Save Our Sundays - Nova Scotia Liquor stores to open on Sunday July 8th

I just can not understand, why our government has once again sold out Nova Scotians. I guess, I should have expected it. No one asked Nova Scotians, if we wanted Liquor stores open on Sunday. Were you asked?

I certainly had no calls on whether or not Liquor stores should open or not. It's not surprising after Rodney MacDonald took away our right to vote. So why even bother letting us decide! I'd be ashamed as a premier to do what he is doing to us. Sounds like we have a dictator and not a "premier". Where are the opposition parties? I guess they too approve of Liquor stores being open so they can get their booze! Workers that work for the Liquor stores, will be forced to work on Sundays unless it is in their union contracts. To our knowledge, there isn't any law by government protecting them . By allowing Liquor stores to open, we are encouraging drunk drivers on our roads another day of the week. Bad enough to have this going on six days a week, let alone on Sunday. Our so called "GREEN GOVERNMENT" is encouraging more traffic on the roads on Sunday not to mention all the lights that will be on, including all retail stores that are now open. With the increasing emissions, how can we talk about fining people for idling our cars?? This is a outrage that our provincial government is contributing to, and is destroying our planet. Shouldn't we be leaders and not followers? Families will suffer, and our environment. It's time for all of us to start speaking out.

Booze seven days a week

Story by ChronicleHerald.ca

NSLC stores to open Sundays

By JOSH VISSER

Suds-loving Nova Scotians can rejoice as selected liquor stores around the province will open Sundays starting July 8. Almost half of the province’s 107 retail booze outlets will open from noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. agency stores, the small outlets that are usually located in convenience stores in rural parts of the province, can start selling booze this Sunday. But critics wonder what took the government so long to decide the issue, as the Sunday openings come well after the unofficial summer drinking season kicked off on the Victoria Day weekend. "I’m not surprised with the delays and dilly-dallies when it came to the opening of the liquor stores on Sunday," Liberal Leader Stephen McNeil said. "It’s been the typical government approach." Added Clarrie MacKinnon, the NDP’s Liquor Control Act critic: "We’ve had Sunday shopping for months now. . . . It seems like this government has a hard time making decisions on some issues. There’s a lost-revenue scenario here as well." Liquor spokesman Rick Perkins said the delay between the cabinet’s decision to open stores and the actual openings was because a few weeks are needed to schedule and organize employees for Sunday shifts. The liquor corporation expects increased profits of about $2 million a year with the new hours, Mr. Perkins said. He said the experience of other provinces with Sunday liquor store openings suggests Nova Scotia can expect a rise in gross sales of one to three per cent a year. The corporation takes in about $200 million a year for Nova Scotia. Less than a month ago, the price of beer went up, as the government expects an extra $17 million from the corporation this year. Both opposition parties expressed concern about employees’ hours, but Mr. Perkins said they will have the choice whether to work Sunday. Joan Jessome, president of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union, said she had no pressing concerns with Sunday openings. Mr. Perkins said it’s too early to know whether part-time and casual workers’ hours will increase, or whether new casual staff would be needed to cover Sundays. Two weeks ago, corporation president and CEO Bret Mitchell caused a bit of a stir when he said schedules would be rearranged to have more full-time staff working during busy shifts. This led to worries the corporation would cut part-time and casual jobs. "We don’t know that yet," Mr. Perkins said when asked whether the Sunday shift will allay those fears. "That’s going to take us a week or two to find out what the response is." There are three classes of liquor employees — full-time and part-time regulars, who are all unionized, and casual workers, who are not. Agency stores can open immediately on Sundays because they are usually privately owned convenience stores that are already open seven days a week. Patrons of the Clyde Street liquor store in Halifax were happy to enter what one termed a more "civilized" age in Nova Scotia. Ken Anderson, who recently moved to Halifax from Victoria, said Nova Scotia’s Sunday liquor laws took some getting used to. Others were pleased with the new-found convenience. "It’s going to be nice to not have to go find a specialty shop (on Sunday)," Mark Ryan said. "There’s been a few Sundays where I wanted a drink and I couldn’t get one." Some specialty shops, such as the cold-beer stores at local breweries, were already allowed to open Sundays. Nova Scotia is the last province to open liquor stores seven days a week.