14/10/2015
Extending Sunday trading hours would erode common leisure time essential for family life and shared social activities such as amateur sports, community involvement and religious observance, the Mission and Public Affairs (MPA) Council of the Church of England says in a document published today.
A critical mass of the population depends on Sunday as a shared day of leisure for joint activities, family life and community building, and this would be damaged if Sunday trading hours were to be extended, the MPA Council says in a submission to a Government consultation on devolving Sunday trading rules.
In the document, submitted to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Department for Communities and Local Government, the MPA Council says it does not find the economic arguments for extending Sunday trading convincing.
The document adds that local areas, whether represented by local authorities, mayors or any other body are not in a position to negotiate on a level playing field with some of the larger retail corporations. A local authority, mayor or other body which believes that extended shopping hours would be bad for their local community would be unable to resist if other areas chose to open shops for longer, they warn.