Sunday trading

Buying and selling on Sunday. This was banned in England and Wales by the Shops Act 1950, but the ban may have been in breach of Article 30 of the Treaty of Rome as amounting to an unlawful restraint on the free movement of goods. Following the defeat of a bill to enable widespread Sunday trading in April 1986, compromise legislation was introduced in 1994 which allowed shops in England and Wales to open but restricted larger stores (over 280 sq m/3,014 ft) to a maximum of six hours. Shops in Scotland, where Sunday trading is fully deregulated, retained the right to open at any time.

Legislation against Sunday trading in the USA has long been very laxly enforced, and in some cases repealed. The conflict is between the free market on the one hand and, on the other, the trade unions' fear of longer working hours and the Christian lobby's traditional opposition to secular activity on the Sabbath.