Retail news round-up on March 9, 2016: SNP to vote against Sunday trading extension, and Aldi boosts online product category.

SNP set to vote against liberalisation of Sunday trading

The Scottish National Party (SNP) said it will vote against the British government’s proposals to relax Sunday trading laws in England and Wales.

Chancellor George Osborne outlined in his July budget that local councils would be handed the power to allow larger shops to remain open for more than six hours.

A UK government source said: “It’s disappointing and hypocritical of the SNP to be trying to deny people the freedoms to shop that are already available to those they represent in Scotland. It’s a particularly extraordinary position for a party that supposedly believes in devolution of powers from Whitehall to be seeking to stand in the way of local leaders in the rest of the UK being able to choose what’s right for their communities and their economies.”

Aldi UK’s online range to feature non-food items

Aldi is poised to add non-food categories, such as electrical goods and garden tools, to its online product range available for home delivery in the UK, Reuters reported.

The hard discounter plans to sell its Specialbuys range online to boost its ecommerce platform.

The Specialbuy items on offer online consist of a Dyson handheld vacuum cleaner, a Gardenline petrol lawnmower and an Ambiano nutrient blender.