Scots Oppose Sunday Trading Plans

Scottish National Party MPs will oppose government plans to introduce Sunday Trading in England and Wales, to protect the rights of workers in Scotland.

The SNP group have agreed this evening to vote against the proposals in the UK government’s Enterprise Bill in the House of Commons tomorrow as the bill fails to protect the premium pay currently received by employees in Scotland. While there has been Sunday Trading in Scotland for some time, employment rights associated with proposed protections to workers who choose not to work on Sundays remain reserved to the UK government under the Employment Rights Act 1996. Commenting after the SNP’s group meeting this evening, SNP Economy spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP said: “Protecting Scottish workers has been paramount to our decision to oppose the government’s plans on Sunday Trading. "We have had Sunday Trading in Scotland for some time and the SNP has never been opposed to it, however our concerns here are rooted in the knock-on impact to Scottish workers who would be at risk of pay cuts - many of whom are already suffering from George Osborne’s cuts to tax credits and other in work support. "SNP MPs have considered all sides in this debate and our decision has been made so workers in Scotland are protected.

“The SNP welcomed the additional employee protections brought forward by the UK Government which amends the Employment Rights Act to protect any worker from being forced into working on a Sunday – however they do not go far enough. There is no meaningful means of pro-active enforcement of the proposed legislation. “The SNP are supporters of Sunday trading – we think in principle it can be a good thing – but we are clear that it should not be happening on the back of often low paid shop workers in Scotland and throughout the UK.”