All day shopping on Sundays to be allowed in Britain

Shopping malls and downtown shopping centers in England will be allowed to extend opening hours on Sundays under measures announced Tuesday by the government.

An amendment to a parliamentary bill tabled today will give local mayors and town hall leaders new powers to extend trading hours beginning this autumn.

The move was immediately attacked by the biggest trade union representing 440,000 shop and retail workers.

Union of Shop Distributive, and Allied Workers (Usdaw) general secretary John Hannett said Tuesday: "Devolving Sunday trading to over 300 local authorities will strangle the retail industry in red tape.

"Over 90 percent of our members working in retail oppose longer Sunday trading because they know it will have an adverse effect on family life and put them under even more pressure to work longer hours on a Sunday."

Religious leaders have also opposed relaxing Sunday opening hours.

Currently, larger stores are only allowed to trade for six hours on Sundays, most opting to open their doors at 10 a.m. or 11 a.m.

The new rules will give retailers the flexibility to seasonally adjust hours to enable them to better compete for trade. Last December, in the run up to Christmas, internet retailers accounted for 13.8 percent of all retail spending.

A spokesman for the government's department for business said: "The ability to seasonally vary Sunday trading hours will mean that high streets can take advantage of increased tourism opportunities enjoyed by countries which have already extended Sunday trading hours. According to Visit Britain, in Sweden, full deregulation has increased turnover by 5.0 percent."

Business minister Anna Soubry said: "Extending Sunday shopping hours has the potential to help businesses and high streets better compete as our shopping habits change.

"The rights of shop workers are key to making these changes work in everyone's interests. We are protecting those who do not wish to work Sundays, and those who do not want to work more than their normal Sunday working hours."

The measures also include greater freedoms for shop workers in England, Scotland and Wales to "opt-out" of working Sundays if they choose to, for example because they object on religious grounds or for family reasons.

The government says the biggest change to Sunday opening hours in a generation is supported by town and city councils, leading retailers, and business leaders.

However, Hannett accused the government of delaying its plans for longer opening hours until the last minute.

"They know there is large scale opposition to devolution of Sunday trading from retailers, shopworkers and the wider community who want Sunday to remain different," he said.

Until 1994, it was illegal for larger stores to open on Sundays, but the law was then changed to allow six hours of trading. It remains illegal for large stores to open on Christmas Day (Dec. 25).

In 2012, the government relaxed Sunday trading hours during the London Olympic Games. Some critics feared this move would open the door to demands for the measures to be made permanent. Endit