Francesca Rudkin: We need to simplify Easter trading hours

If you live in a city, there is something quite special about waking up on Good Friday - to the sound of silence.

There are no cars on the road, no hum of traffic in the distance, no sound of people going about their day-to-day routines. My first thought on Friday was - it’s like Christmas Day. My second thought wasn’t as pleasant - it’s like lockdown. But the feeling was the same - how nice the world is when it pauses for a moment.

But as much as I appreciate these few days a year when many get to stop, the crazy rush, chock-a-block carparks and supermarkets on Thursday and Saturday made me wonder whether it’s worth it. 

We don’t seem to be able to cope, or prepare, for supermarkets to shut. If we weren’t down on hot cross buns, I certainly wouldn’t have made the trip to my local. It’s lovely having Friday and Sunday off, but not, if the days around it are a nightmare.

We have been talking about the inconsistencies and confusion around retail laws over Easter for as long as I can remember. What is open and shut depends on where you are in the country; sometimes where you are in a city. Don’t forget it’s the local authority which decides whether stores can open or not.  

It depends on what you’re selling. There are strange restrictions on what can be sold, and you must be selling something that people can’t put off buying until the next day. But you can get a haircut. And just to make it even more confusing - the Shop Trading Hours Act covers both public holidays, and days that aren’t public holidays, such as Easter Sunday.

I think it’s time to let people decide for themselves how they want to spend their Easter. Whether they open their businesses, work or shop, or do none of the above and quietly go about their day. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News Talks.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
I'd be if you live in a city. There's something
quite special about waking up on Good Friday to the
sound of silence. There are no cars on the road.
There's no hum of traffic in the distance, no sound
of people going about their day's day routines. My first
thought on Friday was like, oh, it's like Christmas Day,
and then my second thought was and as present, it's

(00:32):
like lockdowns. But the feeling was the same. How nice
the world is when it pauses for a moment. But
as much as I appreciate these few days a year
when many get to stop the crazy rush, the shock
of block car parks and the supermarkets on Thursday and
Saturday made me wonder whether it's worth it. We don't
seem to be able to cope or prepare for supermarkets

(00:54):
to shut. If we weren't down on hot Cross Barns,
I certainly wouldn't have made the trip to my local.
It's lovely having Friday and Saturday off, but not if
the days around it are an absolute nightmare at the shops.
We have been talking about the inconsistencies and confusion around
retail laws over Easter for as long as I can remember,

(01:15):
what is open and shut depends on where you are
in the country, sometimes where you are in a city,
because don't forget it's the local authority which decides whether
stores can open or not. It depends on what you're selling.
There are strange restrictions on what can be sold, and
you must be selling something that people can't put off
buying until the next day, but you can get a haircut.
And just to make it even more confusing, the Shop

(01:35):
Trading Hours Act covers both public holidays and days at
aren't public holidays, such as Easter Sunday, even though we
think of it as a public holiday. I think it's
time to let people decide for themselves how they want
to spend their Easter, whether they open their businesses, work
or shop, or do none of the above and quietly
go about their day. We've been arguing forever the merits

(01:57):
of a day off and people being able to spend
time with family and friends or business has been able
to make the most of people wanting to spend money
and get jobs done. I've spoken about employees facing pressure
from their employers to work over Easter when they prefer
not to, and how there are plenty of employees who
would happily take the benefits of working a public holiday.
And let's not forget online retailers can sell you whatever

(02:20):
they like on these days. What a minefield of confusion.
Let's just bite the bullet, simplify the laws, make sure
employees are protected, and let businesses decide if they open
or not and get on like it's twenty twenty five
and not nineteen ninety. I'm also pleased that some sense

(02:42):
is some common sense has been shined around the purchase
of alcohol over Easter. Labour MP Karen mcinnaughty's build to
change rules around alcohol sales on anzac Day, Morning, Good
Good Friday, Easter, Sunday and Christmas was voted through its
first reading a week or so ago. He's happy to
let Christmas slide by the way currently people must order
a meal before having an alcoholic bever regid a restaurant

(03:03):
or a pub. Once again, it's all about simplifying rules
for both hospo tourists and kiwi's catching up with family
and friends at a restaurant over the holiday period, and
there are a lot of businesses who would appreciate it
being simpler to make a buck.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
For more from the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to News Talks at B from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio