News

I’m not the first person to note that the Covid-19 crisis has shaken up politics. After the December 2019 election, we were expecting to be dealing with a government populated by libertarians and putting great faith in the free market and personal responsibility. The one thing we didn’t expect Boris Johnson to be accused of was operating a nanny state, but that’s exactly the charge being levelled by some now.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed an update from the Joint Authorities Cash Strategy (JACS) Group on safeguarding the UK’s cash infrastructure, highlighting the importance of cash to businesses and consumers.

The Joint Authorities Cash Strategy (JACS) Group brings together the Bank of England, Payments Systems Regulator (PSR) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to ensure comprehensive oversight of the overall cash infrastructure across the UK.

Content supplied by LocoSoco:

LocoSoco Group Plc introduce sustainable products and services into communities in a way that shares revenue and equity with community partners.

During this pandemic, LocoSoco supported over 300 communities in making hand sanitisers and cleaning products affordable and accessible with their refill model, delivering over 40 tonnes of Hand Sanitiser nationally. 

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We are running a series of 30 minute webinars to demonstrate the benefits of our Covid-19 response solutions, helping to protect customers and staff.

SECOM Capacity Control: Occupancy and social distancing management

Prominent local visual alerts and warnings suggesting when occupancy limits are breached or when it is safe to enter.

From today (15th July) the rate of VAT on eat-in or hot takeaway food has been cut from 20% to 5% until 12th January 2021.

The temporary VAT cut was announced as part of the Summer Statement as an urgent response to the coronavirus pandemic as part of the effort to support businesses impacted by forced closures and social distancing measures.

Last week, ACS received clarification that any vendor providing food and drink for consumption on the premises, or hot takeaway food or drinks are eligible for the reduced rate, including local shops.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) and NFRN (the Federation of Independent Retailers) raised concerns about the future of the newspaper supply chain in a joint letter to the Minister of State for Media and Data, John Whittingdale MP.

Recently, newspaper publishers and wholesaler representatives called for a competition wavier to bring the industry together to discuss the future of the supply chain. The Covid crisis has changed many dynamics in the news industry, which presents an opportunity for the industry to think about its future.

The Government is to announce that wearing a face covering will be mandatory in shops from Friday 24^th July.

Penalties for not wearing a face covering will be enforced by the police, who can issue fines of up to £100 (reduced to £50 if paid within 14 days).

Face coverings are already mandatory in shops in Scotland, with the policy coming into force on 10^th July. The policy is still under review in Wales.

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Coca-Cola European Partners has announced that its entire Capri-Sun portfolio is now free from artificial ingredients, following the reformulation of its Capri-Sun No Added Sugar range.

Capri-Sun No Added Sugar will now include Stevia, a plant-based sweetener in combination with natural fruit sugars. The new recipe maintains the same great taste that consumers love, with no artificial flavours, colours, sweeteners or preservatives and is soft drinks tax exempt.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to speculation on the Prime Minister’s plans to ban promotions of unhealthy products and restrict where these products can be sited in store.

It has been suggested that the Government is planning to prevent shops from offering promotions on targeted products and a ban is also expected on sweets and chocolates promoted at the end of supermarket aisles and entrances.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the inclusion of certain food and drink sales in the reduced rate of VAT announced by the Chancellor in his summer statement yesterday, and confirmation that convenience stores can go through the same process as other businesses to get licences for seating outside their store.