NY ban is slammed

INDUSTRY bodies have united to condemn the Scottish Government’s plans to ban large shops from trading on New Year’s Day.

Ministers are currently considering extending the ban on Christmas Day trading for larger retailers to cover 1 January.

In a joint letter to ministers, 13 business associations have warned such a ban would limit competition.

David Lonsdale, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “This is an unequivocal message from a formidable cross section of Scottish industry, voicing serious doubts about the wisdom of banning shops from opening to customers on New Year’s Day.

“A legislative ban would be putting rocks in the retail industry’s rucksack just as it seeks to recover and climb out from the worst trading period in decades.”