Should UK shops stay be allowed to open for longer than six hours on Sundays? We hear the case for and against in today’s Debate

YES: The way we shop has changed drastically since 1994 when these laws were imposed

The current restrictions on Sunday trading were imposed in 1994 in England and Wales to protect Sunday as a shared day of rest, particularly for retail workers, but since then, the way in which we shop has changed out of all recognition. Sunday has become a day when many families choose to shop together, and with the increase in part-time working, retail workers can more easily choose their days off. There is also the impact of online trading with more than a quarter of sales taking place online and many consumers choosing to carry out research online before making their purchase.  

In my 30+ years in retail law, I know that nothing beats the in-store experience. We’re seeing high quality, exciting brands planting their flagship stores in London and the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street will hopefully lead the way for other town centres to follow suit. We need to regenerate our town centres outside of London and a relaxation of the rules on Sunday trading can only help achieve this. Plus, we need to cater for those shoppers who choose not to shop online.

Many senior consumers have never been comfortable with online shopping, and the rise of AI and online scams is starting to impact consumer trust. Over 90 per cent of shoppers are concerned about AI-driven risks, including fake businesses created with AI content (94 per cent), AI-generated phishing emails impersonating retailers (93 per cent) and fake product reviews written by AI (91 per cent), according to the State of Ecommerce Trust’s 2026 research. 

Relaxing the restrictions on Sunday trading gives the UK the perfect opportunity to regenerate town centres. It gives customers the choice as to when and how they shop and it allows retail businesses to offer that choice.  

is a partner at law firm Browne Jacobson specialising in retail

NO: Supporters of extended opening hours are unable to prove the economic benefits

The Sunday Trading Act is a fair compromise between competing views. The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers’ (Usdaw) members remain overwhelmingly opposed to extending Sunday trading hours. Allowing large stores to open for longer on Sundays would have a negative impact on retail workers, their families and our communities.

Longer Sunday trading would take a heavy toll on staff who would come under even more pressure to work, when they would rather be spending time with family and engaging in community, sports and leisure activities or attending church.

There would also be a detrimental impact on smaller retailers who can already open longer hours on Sundays. These traders rely on the boost in trade they get before and after large stores are allowed to open on Sunday. Even supporters of extended Sunday opening hours have not been able to show it will lead to economic benefits or job creation. Put simply, opening shops for longer does not mean people have more money to spend.

An experiment with extended Sunday trading during the 2012 Olympic Games was a flop. Usdaw reps reported that in large stores that opened for longer during the Games, over two-thirds were quiet or empty and only five per cent were busy during the extra hours. Many stores reduced their opening times after the first few weeks because they realised that opening for longer didn’t bring more custom, but did increase overheads, and was therefore bad for business.

There are many more issues that need to be addressed to help retail recover, including a fair business rates system to level the playing field with online, action to tackle high levels of theft from shops and attacks on shop workers, along with supporting councils to invest in high streets.

Joanne Thomas is general secretary of Usdaw

THE VERDICT

Liberalising UK Sunday trading laws – which currently prevent shops larger than 280 square metres from opening for more than six hours on the Lord’s day – is a discussion that’s been revisited ever since the rules were first put in place in 1994, and seems to have been infected with the kind of it’s-just-not-gonna-happen resignation that often plagues exciting projects. 

Opponents defend the restrictions for a myriad of causes, from faith-related causes to the protection of retail workers’ leisure time, along with an economic argument – perhaps most pertinent to ’s readers – that longer Sunday opening hours do not generate sales, just displace them. 

Recent results from toy shop The Entertainer, however, perhaps offers a counter to the latter. Since opening its toy shops on Sundays – restricted before September 2025 due to the beliefs of its Christian owners – The Entertainer has seen a 10 per cent uptick in sales, which surely presents at least one economic case study for liberalising trading laws. And besides, if opening for longer hours didn’t serve businesses’ bottom lines, those businesses would be at full liberty to still choose to operate by their previous hours.

Recently, the boss of Selfridges also called for a renewed look at the laws, which currently mean the department shop does not start selling goods until midday on a Sunday, which he feels is limiting the high street’s potential. 

As pedestrianisation (a project that looks set to prove the potential of big swings) transforms Oxford Street, extending Sunday opening hours could be another needed shot in the arm for British retail. And if it feels like one of those things that just won’t change, we would do well to recall before 1994, when trading on Sundays wasn’t allowed at all.