Bernese government council for better protection of minors and four Sunday sales
The Canton of Bern intends to regulate the sale of e-cigarettes by law and allow retail stores to sell on four Sundays per year, instead of the current two. The cantonal government supports these two proposals, on which Bern’s voters will decide on March 7, 2021.
Both projects are part of a revision of the Trade and Commerce Act. While the improved protection of minors with regard to e-cigarettes is undisputed in the government and parliament, opinions differ on Sunday sales, as Cantonal Councillor for Economic Affairs Christoph Ammann (SP) explained to the media in Bern on Wednesday.
Three answers
In order to prevent the entire revision of the law from failing in the event of a no vote on one of the two projects, voters can decide on two variants.
The main motion, which is supported by the government and parliament, includes the undisputed e-cigarette regulation and the extension of Sunday sales from the current two to four per year. The contingent motion also includes the undisputed e-cigarette regulation, but no extension of Sunday sales.
Finally, the voters are also asked which motion they prefer if both are accepted. A total of three voting questions must therefore be answered.
The cantonal government supports the main proposal, as Ammann explained. With two additional Sunday sales, the retail trade could be made more competitive. This has not only been under pressure since the coronavirus crisis. Online retail and shopping tourism were already putting it under pressure before the crisis.
Work on Sundays should be voluntary for staff and paid with a wage supplement, as Ammann stated. Sunday sales will not increase working hours.
Opponents have successfully launched a referendum against the revision of the retail law. They criticize the fact that large distributors and chain stores in particular benefit from the additional Sundays, while smaller stores hardly benefit at all. Staff are threatened with a deterioration in working conditions, which are all too often already precarious. In addition, Sundays should remain work-free, according to the demand mainly from the ranks of Christian parties.
Bourgeois circles are in favor of extending Sunday sales.
Equality for e-cigarettes
The canton's intention to subject e-cigarettes to the same legal regulations as other smoking products is undisputed. This is because there is currently no legal regulation for e-cigarettes. Their sale to young people and children is therefore not currently prohibited.
This should change quickly, as the economic director emphasized. Although a solution is also being worked on at federal level, this will not be ready until mid-2023 at the earliest. "But it could also take much longer," Ammann pointed out. It is therefore necessary for the canton to enact its own legislation now.
The new regulation bans the sale of e-cigarettes to under-18s. Advertising is also prohibited. And finally, e-cigarettes are also subject to the same regulations on protection from passive smoking as conventional cigarettes. (SDA)
