The RMI Petrol Retailers’ Association (PRA) is lending its full support to the Association of Convenience Stores’ (ACS) decision to urge the government to retain Sunday Trading regulations.
Eric Pickles, Communities and Local Government Secretary, has suggested the government may review Sunday Trading laws when the temporary relaxation of restrictions over the Olympics period comes to an end on September 8.
PRA chairman Brian Madderson said: “Our members are already suffering from reduced fuel volumes and margins. If our members were to lose the advantage of competitive opening hours under a change to Sunday Trading laws they would suffer further losses of shop takings as well. We have no doubt this would result in the closure of more forecourts in an already diminishing sector, especially those serving the rural areas.
“The PRA is in talks with the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to highlight the weak resilience of the downstream oil industry, owing to the alarming rate of closures of independent retail forecourts. The possible closure of fuel forecourts is entirely at odds with Government concerns over the amount of refined fuel available on forecourts to motorists at any given time.”
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