Press Releases

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, welcoming measures to bring forward more frequent business rates revaluations to 2021, with revaluations every three years thereafter and confirms that the Valuation Office Agency will continue to value premises instead of self assessment.

The Chancellor had previously announced that business rates revaluations would become more frequent in his 2017 Autumn Budget, but this was scheduled to take place from 2022. Today’s announcement brings those plans forward by 12 months.

The charity Crimestoppers and The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) are today offering a reward of up to £5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the people responsible for the aggravated robbery of a Hampshire service station.

The incident happened on February 17^th at around 4.25am at the Esso garage at Stoney Cross on the westbound carriageway of the A31, which saw one of two staff members working that morning assaulted with a crowbar. The victim was treated for a head injury at Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

The Supporting Entrepreneurship Inquiry held its second evidence session in the National Assembly for Wales on 7th March, taking evidence directly from a range of Welsh Entrepreneurs and business organisations.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has launched a new Retail Sector Council to address challenges faced by the retail industry. The group, made up of senior leaders from the industry, will be co-chaired by retail minister Andrew Griffiths MP and Richard Pennycook, chair of Fenwick and the British Retail Consortium, and former CEO at the Co-op.

ACS has welcomed energy regulator Ofgem’s announcement of a mandatory 12-month limit on backbilling for microbusinesses.

Ofgem’s announcement states: ‘Many suppliers have signed up to, or follow, a voluntary agreement not to backbill customers past 12 months. However, the voluntary agreement does not cover all suppliers, and those that have signed up do not always follow this agreement. Ofgem, which consulted on this issue last year, has decided to ban all domestic and microbusiness suppliers from issuing backbills for energy used more than 12 months ago.’ 

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed comments from the Exchequer Secretary, who said that the Government would hold LINK to account on their commitment to do ‘whatever it takes’ to protect the broad geographic spread of ATMs. 
 

ACS has responded to the Environmental Audit Committee’s inquiry into the government’s 25 Year Environment Plan, welcoming the government’s ambition to reduce the impact of single-use plastics, including action to extend plastic bag charging.

The Environment Plan was announced in January by Prime Minister Theresa May, setting out a range of targets to improve the environment and increase recycling rates. 

Victoria Atkins MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability, will address the 2018 Crime Seminar on 20^th March, detailing the Government’s strategy to tackle crimes committed against retailers. 

The Crime Seminar will feature a first look at the 2018 Crime Report, detailing the impact of crime on the convenience sector from shop theft and fraud to abuse, violent incidents and burglaries.

Convenience stores in Wales have invested over £49m in improving their businesses over the last year, according to new figures released by the Association of Convenience Stores today.

The ACS 2018 Welsh Local Shop Report outlines the huge contribution that convenience stores in Wales make to their local communities, as an employer, and to the Welsh economy.

ACS has condemned a move from LINK, which has today confirmed that it will reduce the interchange fee for card transactions by 5p over the next four years.

ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “Banks have been cutting back their own branch networks, and now they are reducing the interchange fees that fund the network of ATMs provided by retailers and private companies in places that banks have abandoned.  We are concerned that this will lead to a reduction in the number of ATMs, and their reach and accessibility for all types of communities.