All ACS articles – Page 18
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NewsACS gives evidence to inquiry into children and energy drinks
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has given evidence to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, which is currently holding an inquiry into the impact of energy drinks on children’s health. As part of the inquiry, the committee is looking at what current action is being taken on ...
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NewsACS welcomes report calling for new policies on shop theft
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed a new report from the Centre for Social Justice, called Desperate for a Fix, which highlights the close link between drug addiction and theft, and calls for new policies to tackle the £6.3bn annual cost of shop theft. Drug addiction drives up ...
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NewsACS welcomes Scottish Bill to protect shop workers
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed widespread support for a Bill in Scotland creating a new offence designed to protect shopworkers from violence. Over 90% of respondents to the consultation put forward by Daniel Johnson MSP supported measures to create new offences to deter harassment, abuse and violence ...
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NewsACS submits evidence to hand car wash inquiry
The Association of Convenience Stores (AC) has submitted evidence to an inquiry launched by the Environmental Audit Committee into the regulation of hand car washes, calling for better enforcement of existing regulations and the consideration of a licensing scheme. In the submission, ACS encourages the Environmental Audit Committee to consider ...
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NewsACS welcomes Welsh decision on deposit return scheme
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed the Welsh Government’s announcement that it will seek to work towards a UK-wide deposit return system for drinks containers in Wales. ACS is calling for detailed consideration of the role that retailers can play in such a scheme, including the challenges and ...
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NewsHappy staff are good for business, Lord Price tells ACS Summit
Those with the happiest workforces fare better in business, according to Mark Price, a former government minister and managing director of Waitrose – now a Lord. But the retail sector is next to the bottom out of 20 sectors surveyed for satisfaction and happiness. Addressing retailers at this week’s ACS ...
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NewsACS calls for tighter control of illicit trade
Recommendations on ways to tackle the illicit trade have been made by the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) in response to the All-Party Parliamentary Illicit Trade Group’s call for evidence to inform its inquiry into the state of the illicit trade in the UK. ACS raised concerns about the impact ...
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Analysis
James Lowman: ACS chief executive
We recently published our annual Crime Report, looking at the overall scale and impact of crimes committed against the convenience sector, covering everything from staff theft and fraud, to robberies and ram raids. The headline figures paint a stark picture with almost a million incidents of shop theft reported by ...
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NewsACS reveals surge in shop thefts and violence in Crime Report
There has been a significant rise in the number of thefts from shops over the last year, and it is increasingly being linked to aggressive behaviour towards retailers and their staff, according to the Association of Convenience Stores’ 2018 Crime Report. Retailers reported that challenging shop thieves was the biggest ...
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NewsACS welcomes decision to bring forward business rates reform
A decision to bring forward changes to the business rates system, announced in the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, has been welcomed by the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS). The Chancellor said he was bringing forward more frequent business rates revaluations to 2021, with revaluations every three years thereafter and confirmed that ...
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NewsACS chief invited to join new Retail Sector Council
ACS chief executive James Lowman has been invited to sit on a new industry-led Retail Sector Council set up by the Government. The council will meet regularly with industry to discuss the challenges the sector faces and provide advice to the Government. It will review how best retailers can adapt ...
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NewsACS calls for incentives for petrol stations to install EV chargers
Petrol stations at strategic points in the UK should be incentivised to invest in electric car (EC) charging, according to the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS). It said this would be a much better way to develop a network of charging facilities than simply forcing all “large fuel retailers” to ...
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NewsACS calls for transparency in Welsh rates consultation
ACS has responded to the Welsh Government consultation on reforming the business rates appeals system, calling for greater transparency for the data used to arrive at valuations and warning against repeating the new Check, Challenge, Appeal appeals system in England. The Welsh Government’s consultation aims to reduce speculative appeals and ...
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NewsACS welcomes extension of plastic bag charge to small shops
The government’s decision to extend the 5p charge on single use plastic carrier bags to all retailers in England has been welcomed by the Association of Convenience Stores. The move was part of a long-term plan to protect the environment announced by the Prime Minister, including measures to reduce plastic ...
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Analysis
James Lowman: chief executive, ACS
You may have seen and heard ACS in the media over Christmas talking about some changes to the way the police, courts and government are responding to shop theft. There are a couple of separate issues at play here. Firstly, different police forces are setting policies about how they prioritise ...
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NewsACS teams with PayPoint to deliver Assured Advice
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has announced a new partnership with PayPoint to make its Assured Advice programme available to all retailers via their PayPoint One platform. Retailers can access support on all aspects of regulatory compliance for convenience retailing via their device or the PayPoint website. Steve O’Neill, ...
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NewsACS welcomes rate relief scheme from Welsh government
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed the announcement of a permanent small business rate relief scheme and the extension of extra support for high street retailers in Wales. However, it has raised concerns about the limits being imposed on the type of business that will be eligible for ...
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NewsACS raises concerns over impact of new tobacco regulations
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has written to Exchequer Secretary Andrew Jones MP, raising concerns about the impact of upcoming tobacco track and trace regulations on retailers. The track and trace proposals in the EU Revised Tobacco Products Directive, due to come into force in May 2019, aim to ...
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NewsACS welcomes MP’s comments on cash points
The Association of Convenience Stores has welcomed comments from Rt Hon Nicky Morgan MP, Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, about the importance of the UK cash machine network and the potential impact that reductions in interchange fees could have on local shops and other small businesses. In a consultation ...
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NewsBudget: ACS cautiously welcomes rates changes
The ACS has welcomed the introduction of more frequent business rates revaluations announced in today’s Autumn Budget, but only if this doesn’t place more burdens on retailers to assess and relay information on their properties to the Government. ACS chairman James Lowman said the introduction of more frequent revaluation must ...