Shops that are currently prohibited from opening on Sundays may soon be allowed to open for business between 6am and 5pm, on condition that they remain closed on another day of the week.

An Economy Ministry spokesman told The Sunday Times of Malta this measure was among a number of recommendations set to be included in a White Paper regulating shop opening hours.

Retail outlets may extend their business hours up to 10pm on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays without the need for a permit

However, he stressed that no final decision had been taken and that consultations were still under way. This White Paper, announced last November during the Budget speech, has not yet been published.

Under current legislation there is a distinction between retail outlets in touristic zones and those in the rest of the country. Businesses outside tourist areas are charged €700 every time they want to open on public holidays and Sundays. Retailers have been complaining for some time that this was creating unfair competition and that they could not recoup the fee in a single day.

Under the proposed system all shops would be obliged to display their opening hours, indicating when they would be closed. However, this arrangement would not apply for the Christmas period.

The ministry spokesman said that grocers and supermarkets would be allowed to open on Sundays between 6am and 1pm even if they were not within the designed touristic zones. He added that they would be treated just like other outlets selling essential items which are not obliged to close on Monday. In the case of public holidays which do not fall on Sunday, the proposal is for all shops to be allowed to open, with the exception of Good Friday and the Santa Marija feast day.

Another change in the pipeline is the introduction of late night shopping. The government is recommending that retail outlets may extend their business hours up to 10 pm on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays without the need to obtain a permit.

A recent survey commissioned by the Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises showed that two-thirds of businesses are against the current restrictions on shopping hours. The survey of 500 retailers and traders, found 54 per cent wanted to be able to open on public holidays. Similarly 52 per cent said they did not agree with restrictions on Sundays.