France to let more shops open on Sunday

France is set to let shops in touristic areas and special urban retail zones open on Sundays, after parliament today approved a law liberalising trading as part of President Nicolas Sarkozy's reform agenda.

Like some other reform plans, such as a shake-up in education, the Sunday trading law was watered down after criticism from opposition politicians and unions who feared it would deprive people of their day of rest.

As in much of Europe, the French public remains divided, with polls showing people torn between convenient shopping and respect for the spiritual and cultural break.

Parliament approved the law with 282 votes against 238. Sarkozy's ruling coalition voted broadly in favour, while left-wing socialists and Greens were against.

Under the new law, which will still have to pass the Senate, retailers in touristic areas or spas will be allowed to open on Sunday. Before, this only applied to shops specialising in leisure goods.

Groceries will be allowed to open until 1 p.m., rather than noon, and big cities such as Paris and Lille will be able to create special retail zones for Sunday trading.

Employees working on Sundays must do so voluntarily and will be paid double their usual rate.

Earlier this month, a poll commissioned by newspaper Liberation showed just over half of French oppose Sunday work, while the vast majority -- over 80 percent -- see Sunday as an important spiritual and recreational day and want it broadly to remain a day of rest.

However, a poll by Le Figaro newspaper showed in December that two-thirds of French people were in favour of letting shops open on Sunday if they wanted to do so.

Restrictions on Sunday trading, once common in Europe, have been gradually eroded despite heavy opposition from the Church ever since Britain liberalised its trading laws in the 1990s. Germany has also loosened its trading laws, though in some countries including Italy, deserted town centres and shuttered shops are still the norm on Sunday.

The law banning business as usual on Sunday has also pitted retailers against authorities, with luxury brand Louis Vuitton fighing a protracted legal battle to be allowed to sell bags in its flagship store on the Champs Elysees on that day.