News

Today (11th April) the Health Minister Neil O’Brien has announced plans to introduce a new scheme encouraging smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes, as part of a series of measures to help the Government meet its smokefree 2030 target.

Key measures announced include:

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) is calling on retailers to take part in its annual National Living Wage survey.

The findings of the survey will inform ACS’ employment policy work over the coming year, including ACS’ submission to the Low Pay Commission.

The Low Pay Commission currently estimates that the National Living Wage (NLW) will be in the range of £10.90 and £11.43 with a central estimate of £11.16, to meet the Government’s target to reach two-thirds of median earnings by 2024.

The Low Pay Commission’s consultation is seeking views on:

Book your place at ACS’ Technology Showcase, Hosted One2Ones and Networking Dinner, taking place on 16th May in London.

There’s still time to book your place at ACS’ biggest ever annual event, Conference23, taking place on 25th April at the Vox in Birmingham alongside the National Convenience Show.

ACS Conference23 is a must-attend event for anyone in the convenience sector looking to grow their business, build valuable relationships, and get exclusive insights on how to prepare for the future.

The National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rate increases have now come into effect as of 1^st April.

The new rates are as follows:

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation launched by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) seeking feedback on legislation to further restrict advertising of high fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) products, highlighting concerns that lo

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to Ofgem’s review of the non-domestic gas and electricity market, calling for better regulation to provide small businesses with clarity and support with their energy contracts.

In the submission, ACS has highlighted the need for stronger regulations on energy suppliers, to provide businesses with clear and transparent information on: billing, payment options, data transparency, contract terms, and termination.

ACS has welcomed the introduction of new legislation to reform the business rates system to improve the accuracy of business rates bills for local shops.

Introduced to Parliament on 29th March, the Non-Domestic Rates Bill aims to deliver on the government’s long standing commitments to increase the frequency of revaluations and make the process of business rates valuations more transparent.

In all my time in this industry, I can’t remember a category that’s sprung onto the market with the scale and impact of so-called “disposable” vapes. I’ll talk below about why I think this is the wrong term to use, but regardless of that, this has become a huge part of many convenience store businesses. This brings with it some challenging regulatory issues that we’re now facing into. Whether through the government’s tobacco strategy or through separate legislation, we’re highly likely to see more regulation of these products within the next few years.

There’s just one month until ACS’ biggest ever annual event, Conference23, taking place on 25th April at the Vox in Birmingham alongside the National Convenience Show.

ACS Conference23 is a must-attend event for anyone in the convenience sector looking to grow their business, build valuable relationships, and get exclusive insights on how to prepare for the future.