The continental Sunday under threat

At present here almost everything is shut on Sundays. About the only things you see open are the petrol stations, the bakers and the oyster stalls by the side of the road. Oh - and some cafés and restaurants. Even articulated lorries are banned from the roads unless they are carrying refrigerated goods. They park up until Monday in big lines at the service stations on the rocade.

Five Sundays a year all the shops are allowed to open and one of them was yesterday. It was noticeable that Pessac town centre was quite lively. Workers in Meublerama (a big furniture chain) get double time and time off in lieu for working Sunday.

However Parliament is discussing changing the law to permit shops to open every Sunday from next year. I am not clear what shops are included in the law and whether it would result in France having a British-style Sunday trading pattern or not.

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