Shops face €700 fee if they open Friday

Shops planning to open during this Friday’s public holiday have been warned they may be slapped with a €700 fee, despite a previous “agreed commitment” to resolve the issue on a yearly basis.

Exemptions are one-offs

The warning was issued by the General Retailers and Traders Union, which in a statement on Monday placed the blame for what should have been “a formality” squarely on the government’s shoulders.

“In spite of last year’s commitment, the government has failed to decide in time to liberate February 10, an important shopping day in view of Valentine’s Day,” the GRTU said.

As a result, shops which were not explicitly exempted from paying the €700 fee demanded by law, risked incurring the charge if they chose to open on Friday.

The GRTU has consistently lobbied for shops to be allowed to trade on several public holidays, insisting shop owners, “who in their vast majority are owners/managers and family businesses”, should be free to decide for themselves whether or not to open on public holidays while respecting Maltese traditions, such as Good Friday and Christmas Day.

The government has occasionally waived the €700 fee in the past, although it had insisted such exemptions were one-offs and not the norm.

When contacted, GRTU President Paul Abela bemoaned the lack of communication from the government’s end.

“We had been in discussions throughout the course of last year but we never heard back and talks were left in the air,” he said.

A government spokesman declined to comment.