Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012

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A decision made 1 October 2012:

Decision Reference: MD-E-2012-0120
Decision Summary Title :	Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012		Date of Decision Summary:	27th September 2012
Decision Summary Author:	Strategy Manager, Policy and Regulation		Decision Summary: Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Type of Report: Oral or Written?	Written		Person Giving Oral Report:
Written Report Title :	Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012		Date of Written Report:	27th September 2012
Written Report Author:	Strategy Manager, Policy and Regulation		Written Report : Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Subject: Decision to make an Order under Article 4 (1) of the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations 2011 designating ‘special occasions’.
Decision(s): The Minister approved and made the following Order pursuant to Article 4 (1) of the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations 2011. ‘Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012’ This Order will designate four Sundays before Christmas each year from 2012 onward as special occasions.
Reason(s) for Decision: There is a general expectation amongst retailers and consumer that there will be a more liberal Sunday trading regime in the run-up to Christmas, as there is a considerable increase in retail sales at that time of year. Historically, this has been achieved by linking the trading with the Fête dé Noué, to conform to the letter of the 1960 law that there be a ‘fair fete or festival’ ongoing to allow Connétables to issue a blanket permit to shops to open. Under the new legislation, there does not need to be such an event ongoing for a more liberal trading regime to be enacted, the Economic Development Minister, after consultation with the Comité des Connétables, simply needs to designate that certain days will be special occasions under the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations 2011. This will allow the Fête dé Noué to return to its original, more effective two-week duration, as it will not need to be artificially extended to satisfy the desire of retailers to open. The practice of designating four Sundays before Christmas for a less restrictive trading regime has been ongoing since 2006, and has met with general approval. Since the modernisation of the Sunday trading regime, only shops with a retail sales area over 700 square metres will be affected by this decision. After discussion with the Law Draftsman, the Minister has decided to make an Order that not only encompasses 2012, but also all future years. This provides shops and customers with certainty about when trading days will fall, and reduces the cost to the States of drafting an additional Order annually. The formula detailed in the Order will therefore continue to operate indefinitely unless it is changed by some future Economic Development Minister.
Resource Implications: There are no direct resource implications to the States. The secondary effects of this Order are likely to be- a reduction in the administrative burden for Parishes (resulting from less individual Sunday trading applications for the days in question) and a reduction in the use of drafting time (as the Order will continue indefinably).
Action required: Once the Minister has signed the Order, it is to be returned to the States Greffe with the Greffier of the States to be requested to arrange for the Order to be presented to the States.
Signature: Senator A.J.H.Maclean		Position: Minister
Date Signed:		Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):

Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012

REPORT

Background

Since the late 1990s there have been special arrangements in place to allow shops to open in the run-up to Christmas, in order to allow last-minute shoppers the chance to stock up before the holidays. This has historically been connected to the Fête dé Noué, a program of events including street theatre, al fresco performances, craft markets and another entertainment, intended to entertain shoppers and bring more footfall to local retailers in the festive season.

The Fête dé Noué began as a relatively ‘focussed’ event spanning one weekend. However, as the Fête comprised a ‘fair, fete or festival’ under the Shops Sunday trading (Jersey) Law 1960, (meaning that shops could open on Sundays during the Fête) there was considerable pressure to extend the programme of events to allow more Sunday shopping in the run-up to Christmas.

The fete was eventually extended to four Sundays. While this allowed additional trading it stretched the programme of events and lowered the quality of the festival. Nevertheless, retailers were glad of the opportunity to make the most of the pre-Christmas rush. This shopping opportunity also seemed popular with the public.

The new legislation

In 2011, the States approved the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations, which created a new Sunday trading scheme to replace the 1960 law. Under Regulation 4 the Economic Development Minister has the power to designate some days each year as ‘special occasions’ after consultation with the Comité des Connétables. (Good Friday, Liberation Day, Christmas Day or 26th December cannot be designated as special occasions.)

On special occasions, Connétables may publish a notice in the Jersey Gazette granting permission to trade to all shops of specified types, regardless of size. The Connétable has discretion over which types of business are included in this blanket permit. Conditions relating to hours of opening, deliveries, parking arrangements etc can be imposed upon shops opening under a blanket permit.

In 2011, the Minister designated the four Sundays before Christmas as special occasions, as this met the prevailing expectation of retailers and the public.

A side effect of the new law is to ‘decouple’ Sunday trading from the Fête dé Noué, which has allowed the Fête to return to a shorter and more cost-effective form.

The Order

There have been calls from both Parishes and retailers to establish a system by which all parties can be informed well in advance about the planned special occasions each year, and can confidently plan their business operations, including Sunday opening for large businesses, without the danger of a surprise late in the year.

Accordingly, after consultation with the Comité des Connétables the Minister requested the Law Draftsman (by means of MD-E-2012-0069, on 16th June 2012) to develop an Order that designates the required special occasions not only in 2012 but also for 2013 onwards.

This will provide the necessary certainty to shops and the public, and separately help to conserve scare law drafting resources, as an Order will not need to be drafted every year.

The Order has now been made by the Minister. The text follows.

SHOPS (REGULATION OF OPENING) (SPECIAL OCCASIONS) (JERSEY) ORDER 2012

THE MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, in pursuance of Regulation 4 of the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations 2011 and having consulted the Comité des Connétables, orders as follows –

1 Designation of days as special occasions

Each of the following Sundays is designated, as a special occasion in every year, under Regulation 4 of the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Jersey) Regulations 2011 –

(a) if 25th December falls on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, the first 4 Sundays of December; or

(b) if 25th December falls on a Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday, the last Sunday of November and the first 3 Sundays of December.

2 Citation and commencement

This Order may be cited as the Shops (Regulation of Opening) (Special Occasions) (Jersey) Order 2012 and shall come into force 7 days after it is made.