Kāpiti Coast District shops will be allowed to continue trading on Easter Sunday, following a Council decision today.

Mayor Janet Holborow said Council had reviewed the policy as it is required to do every five years and decided no change to the current policy was needed.

“We consulted the community in June on whether we should renew, revoke, or amend the policy. We received 134 submissions with 74.6 percent in favour of renewing it. This position was supported by Council,” Mayor Holborow said.

The policy doesn’t require shops to open, it just permits it. It’s up to shop owners to decide whether they want to open, and for staff to choose whether to work.

“This decision simply allows things to continue as they have done for the past five years, providing choice for our community,” she said.

Easter Sunday is not a public holiday like Good Friday or Easter Monday. Easter Saturday is a normal Saturday for shop trading rules. If Council doesn’t have a policy in place allowing shops to open, Easter Sunday would be treated as a ‘restricted trading day’, which would mean shops that open could be fined by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

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