News

David Cameron, leader of the Conservative party, urged businesses to give staff a pay rise in his speech. He also stated that the Conservatives planned to increase the amount of business rates that local areas could keep from 50% to at least two thirds. Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats, also spoke at the conference, discussing the Lib Dem’s plans to prioritise small businesses for tax cuts. Chuka Umunna, Shadow Business Secretary, discussed Labour’s plans to devolve extra funding from central to local Government.

ACS have launched a helpful new app to coincide with their unmissable Summit 15 event on 21st April 2015. The bespoke app is packed will features to enhance your experience before, during and after the convenience stores industry’s key event of the year, held at the NEC in Birmingham.

Ed Miliband announced plans to give new fathers a month of paid leave, nearly double the current rate. The plans would also bring paternity pay into line with the minimum wage, from £138.18 to at least £260 a week.  The policy would be expected to cost £150 million a year, funded through proposed changes to childcare. Paid paternity leave was introduced in 2013 and parents may be entitled to shared paternity leave and pay in April 2015.

ACS has published a brand new guide for Managing Food Safety and Hygiene to add to the successful Assured Advice scheme. The new guide provides an overview of what is expected of convenience store retailers to comply with food safety and hygiene laws.

The ACS Assured Advice Guide for Managing Food Safety and Hygiene contains comprehensive advice to protect retailers against a range of risks apparent in a typical convenience store. Included in the guide are procedures for temperature checks, chilled storage, hot foods, cross contamination, record keeping, waste, cleaning and more.

In a letter to local councils, Ministers have told planning officers to use powers in the National Planning Policy Framework to deliver retail investment in town centres. Clarification of planning policy has only previously been delivered by Ministers on controversial planning issues like Greenbelt developments.

During the election campaign, you are likely to have Prospective Parliamentary Candidates dropping into your business trying to canvass your vote.  Make sure you are prepared to challenge your Prospective Parliamentary Candidates (PPC) on the issue that matter to you.

Here are the top questions you should consider asking;

As the UK counts down to the General Election on 7^th May, ACS have launched a new section of its website, the Election Centre, to keep retailers informed of the announcements that matter to small businesses.

The Election Centre, located under the ‘Lobbying’ tab on www.acs.org.uk’s menu bar, will showcase the store visits that retailers have organised across the UK, as well as providing information about how the major parties line up on key issues, political announcements and feedback from retailers on how they’re planning to vote.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation by the Department of Health, supporting the proposed restriction of 18 years of age for the sale of nicotine inhaling products, such as electronic cigarettes.

The proposed regulations would make it an offence to sell nicotine inhaling products to anyone under the age of 18 and make ‘proxy purchasing’ – adults buying the product for an individual under age – of e-cigarettes illegal.

Rajan Vaish, has met local MP, Yvonne Fovargue, in his Nisa store in Wigan to discuss some of the key issues that have been affecting his business ahead of the general election in May.

Rajan’s Nisa store in Hindley is a fixture of local community life employing 10 people and providing retail and post office services to the local community.

Across Ms Fovargue’s Makerfield constituency there are 56 convenience stores employing over 420 people and ACS, the voice of local shops, is calling for four policies that would make a difference for local shops.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to the Sentencing Council’s consultation on robbery guidelines, calling for operation disruption in store to be included in the harm factors for sentencing.

The Sentencing Council are consulting on which factors should be considered when dealing out sentences for offenders, with a focus on understanding the impact on a business.

Statistics from the ACS Crime Report (2014) show that there were over 2,400 robberies in 2013 and over 7,000 incidents of violence resulting in injury.