Nationals will not ‘flip flop’ on retail trading hours, Holt.

Author: Colin Holt
Published on: 16-October-2009

The Nationals WA will maintain their stance on the deregulation of retail trading hours, saying the Party would not abandon the position they campaigned on at the last election.

State President Colin Holt said the Party ran a high profile ‘save our shops’ campaign as a key plank of the 2008 state election campaign and would not be flip flopping on its position now in Government.

”Voters made their position clear at the 2005 referendum on extended trading hours and we gave them an assurance before the last election that we would not supportextended trading hours – nothing has changed,” Mr Holt said. “The Nationals campaigned strongly on opposing the introduction of day light saving and politicians that ignored the outcome of referendums."

“Western Australians had the chance to change retail trading hours in 2005 and chose to reject the change decisively in a referendum."

Mr Holt said that big business, led by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA, was pushing for change to allow them to increase their already sizeable market share.

“Western Australians will not be duped by the Premier’s statement that country people do not want Parliament to oppose deregulated trading hours for the city,” Mr Holt said. “If you believe that country people don’t have a stake in this argument then think again – the produce that stocks the shelves of the supermarkets is grown in regional WA and there are legitimate concerns that local produce will disappear from the shelves of the majors to be replaced by generic home brands.”

Mr Holt said The Nationals had always stood up for small businesses.