The article notes that Germany bans shopping on Sundays. Indeed, many European countries ban stores from being open at certain times of day or on Sundays. For t

The article notes that Germany bans shopping on Sundays. Indeed, many European countries ban stores from being open at certain times of day or on Sundays. For the sake of curiosity I will attempt to elucidate the various restrictions, and exceptions to those restrictions, that we have in Norway. * Since 2003 (before which stores could not be open past 21:00), there have been no restrictions on opening hours on weekdays. Most supermarkets and grocery stores in urban areas are open until 23:00 -- a few are even open around the clock. In a lot of Europe, the common closing time for grocery stores seems to be 21:00 or so. * Stores are, in general, not permitted to be open on Sundays. * Since 1998, stores with a floor area of under 100 square metres, and only those that primarily sell groceries, have been permitted to open on Sundays. * For petrol stations, the floor area limit is 150 square metres. * If a store is judged to be in an area of particular interest to tourists, it can open on Sundays regardless of floor area. * Before major holidays, stores can open on Sundays regardless of floor area. My local grocery store interprets this as allowing it to open on all Sundays in December, but perhaps curiously, most stores do not seem to open on Sundays in December. (* There might well be more restrictions and exceptions that I'm unaware of.) * The current government planned to lift all restrictions on opening hours on Sundays, but after opposition from the major supermarket chains (virtually all supermarkets/grocery stores in Norway are operated by a handful of chains) the plans were put on ice. A lot of this comes down to the contrast between the ostensibly rights-driven American politics and the more consensus-driven politics in many European politics. While in the US the government openly cooperating with major businesses to ensure their smooth operation without any major disruptions would probably be seen by the general public as corruption, it would not be seen (and is not seen), in my opinion, in that way in much of Europe -- but rather as doing what's necessary and natural to ensure the smooth functioning of society. Not just with regards to the grocery stores themselves, but also with regards to the values of society. A lot of people, even many who are not religious, see the "resting day" as a value that's worth preserving, and ditching it in favour of the right to keep your store open whenever you want would widely be seen as very foolish.