News

Last week I was – along with about 70 retailers and suppliers – in Dublin looking at the much-heralded convenience store market in Ireland. We saw loads of great stores, but the thing that stood out more than anything else was the outstanding food to go offer in pretty much every site we visited. 

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the government’s decision not to progress with plans to introduce a tobacco licensing scheme for retailers, following a consultation last year. However, the Government has warned that EU regulations to track tobacco product through supply chains could require some additional requirements for companies producing, moving, or selling tobacco.

ACS has welcomed a Government response to a Lords Committee report on the Licensing Act, setting out its plans to tackle alcohol related harm within the existing framework of the Licensing Act.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed figures released today by the Office of National Statistics which show a decline in the percentage of young people that get cigarettes from retailers.

The report published by ONS and the NHS, looks at the prevalence of smoking, drinking and drug use among young people (school pupils aged 11 to 15).

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation from cash machine network operator LINK, raising concerns about the impact that the proposals could have on local shops and their customers if the number of free to use ATMs were reduced.

Convenience stores in a number of pilot towns are being given the opportunity to take part in a scheme set up by Gloucestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, working with the government’s Future High Streets Forum, to help retailers work together to promote their towns online.  The pilot is using the #WDYT hashtag to generate conversations among customers in Gloucester, Stroud and Cheltenham, with the pilot now being extended to Leamington Spa, Stafford and a number of other towns that are preparing to launch.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed a letter published by the Department of Communities and Local Government, clarifying the allocation of rural rate relief in the coming year.

ACS has responded to the publication of HM Revenue and Customs’ report on the prevalence of illicit alcohol and tobacco in the UK, calling for targeted action at a local level to reduce the impact of the illicit trade on responsible retailers.

Business groups including the Association of Convenience Stores have written to the Chancellor, calling for urgent action to address the problems with the business rates system in the 2017 Budget.

The letter highlights concerns over the scheduled business rates increase of 3.9% in April 2018 set as a result of the Retail Prices Index reaching that level in September of this year, noting that overall, the increase will amount to around £1.1bn more being paid by UK businesses. The 3.9% annual increase is the highest since 2012.

ACS has given evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee, raising concerns about the practicality, cost and effectiveness of a deposit return scheme in the UK.

The Committee are considering ways to reduce littering and increase plastic bottle recycling rates from the current rate of 74%.  The hearing included looking at the way that products are manufactured, the current recycling infrastructure, and Deposit Return Schemes that have been implemented in other countries with mixed results.