England Relaxes Shopping Hours for Olympics

England's laws restricting shopping hours on a Sunday to six hours will be relaxed during the London 2012 Games, finance minister George Osborne said.

The suspension would run in England and Wales for eight Sundays covering the Olympics (July 27 to August 12) and the Paralympics (August 29 to September 9).

"We've got the whole world coming to London -- and the rest of the country -- for the Olympics," Britain's chancellor of the exchequer told BBC television.

"It would be a great shame -- particularly when some of the big Olympic events are on Sunday -- if the country had a 'closed for business' sign on it."

Campaigners against seven-days-a-week shopping hours claim it will open the door to a permanent shift in the rules, hitting family life.

"I want, through the Games, to give people the opportunity to visit our shops and spend money and grow the economy and enjoy themselves," Osborne said.

"All I'm proposing at the moment is we do this for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games."

The emergency legislation is expected to appear in Osborne's annual budget on Wednesday -- set to be focused on reviving growth -- with an effort to rush the plan through within 10 days.

Under the Sunday Trading Act 1994, shops in England and Wales covering more than 280 square meters are restricted to any six hours of continuous trading between 10:00am and 6:00pm on Sundays.

The law also protects the rights of workers who do not wish to work on a Sunday.

The Keep Sunday Special campaign said the plans were "profoundly worrying".

"KSS has always promoted Sundays as a day for shared activities. No changes to Sunday trading legislation are needed to enable all Olympic visitors to have a great day out enjoying time with family and friends.

"When did shopping become an Olympic sport? Why are the Olympics deemed to be a special case?"

Stores decide their own Sunday trading hours in Scotland, while large shops in Northern Ireland can open between 1:00pm and 6:00pm on a Sunday.