NZ Catholic Bishop Steve Lowe (pictured) is dismayed Easter trading – and the current ban on it – is up for change. He’s concerned about the ACT Party’s Easter Trading bill, which was drawn in a ballot just before Easter. “I guess when I read about this, I groaned. I thought: ‘Here we go again’. Read more
Napier City Council has lost a court battle to retain Easter Sunday trading because it carried out public consultation while the Christian community was distracted with advent over the Christmas period. Justice Robert Dobson recently overruled the council’s decision to allow Easter Sunday trading following a High Court judicial hearing last month. Continue reading
Dunedin bar owners are toasting moves allowing them to serve booze to Ed Sheeran fans at Easter. The city council voted in December to allow shops to trade on the prominent religious holiday, coinciding with the British pop star’s three concerts in the city, but has since gone a step further by granting 10 special Read more
Pop star Ed Sheeran is going to be performing three concerts in Dunedin next Easter weekend. This has complicated the debate about the Easter trading policy in that city. The debate might have played out on predictable lines – business for and unions against – but the Sheeran factor has complicated the matter. There are fears Read more
The prospect of retail tills ringing on Easter Sunday has Hamiltonians arguing the relative merits of convenience, commercialism, and Christianity. Hamilton City Council’s suggestion was for retailers to choose whether to open while employees would be able to turn down the work. But of 225 submitters, 71 per cent said no to the idea. Many Read more
An Auckland councillor is demanding answers over why $15,000 was spent on an invitation-only lunch to ask Pacific leaders about their views on Easter Sunday trading. The invitation to a buffet lunch last Tuesday at the Waipuna Lodge was sent out to 58 Pacific community and church leaders. Continue reading
South Auckland politicians say they are opposed to allowing work on Easter Sunday. Auckland Council’s governing body voted to go to the community about whether it should allow Easter Sunday trading from next year. Continue reading
A proposed bylaw allowing stores in Marlborough to open on Easter Sunday has an unlikely advocate – a pastor. The Marlborough District Council called for public submissions on the issue after Parliament passed a bill to give local councils the power to create their own bylaws on Easter Sunday trading in August. Many church leaders in Marlborough opposed the Read more
There were a mere handful of complaints made nationwide about stores trading over Easter – and business leaders around the country say a law change is long overdue. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment was notified 15 times about businesses breaking trading laws over Easter weekend – well down on the 42 complaints lodged Read more
The Government’s attempt to “pass the buck” over Easter trading hours has not gone down well with Wellington City Council. Parliament is currently considering legislation that would allow local councils to decide whether shops stay open on Easter Sunday within their boundaries or within smaller, specific areas. But at a meeting on Wednesday, many Wellington Read more