Senior members of the Federation of Independent Retailers (the Fed) in Scotland discussed retail crime and new year trading in a call with Conservative MSP Maurice Golden last week, following the recent launch of their manifesto for this May’s Holyrood election.
Golden represents the North East Scotland region for the Conservative party and has served as an MSP since 2016.
Also included on the call was Scottish district president and Paisley retailer, Hussan Lal, as well as one of his predecessors in the role, Ferhan Ashiq, who runs businesses in Musselburgh and Prestonpans in East Lothian, along with the Fed’s political engagement coordinator, Douglas Oliver.
During the call, Lal and Ashiq identified concerns about weak Christmas trade and the impact of rising bills including higher taxes from recent Westminster Budgets and also the direct and indirect costs of store theft as well as recent experiences of counterfeit currency.
The Fed participants re-emphasised the key elements in the Fed’s 2026 election manifesto, including a request for real action to tackle retail crime and action to control costs, especially limits to business rate bills and the swift and efficient roll out of the new DRS for recycling.
Golden said: “It was very good to catch up with the Fed – who I’ve worked closely with for a number of years in my time in the Holyrood and I thanked them for sharing their experiences which I’ll feed in with Scottish Conservative colleagues.”
You can now secure your tickets to the Convenience Awards 2026!
Join us on 11 March in Liverpool to celebrate the entire convenience community.
See this year’s finalists and book your seat here.
No comments yet