Sir; Sir Peter Davis must be the current UK grocery champion with his outstanding leadership of Sainsbury's recovery. He is reported by Nigel Cope, City editor of The Independent (January 15) as seeking longer trading hours for Sundays in the run-up to Christmas on the grounds housewives need the extra time to buy turkeys. Sir Peter is the only grocer member of Sir Don Curry's Policy Commission on the Future of Farming and Food, representing the superstore corporations as well as independent retailers on this body: a challenge in itself. Suggesting turkey sales are jeopardised by restricting Sunday trading hours is politically astute as it appears to extend a helping hand to farmers. But it is false. Restrictions on Sunday trading for superstore corporations were imposed by parliament to protect small independent retailers. I do not believe Sir Peter needs extra Sunday trading hours to achieve his target of putting Sainsbury back where it was. His management activities will achieve that. When Sir Don Curry presents his recommendations to the pm, we hope Cherie Blair will read them and remind her husband that the purchase of a Christmas turkey is so important in every household that timing of the purchase should not be dependent on longer superstore trading hours. In its defence of the independent retailer before the Commission, FWD made it crystal clear that any extension of Sunday trading for superstores would devastate small shops just as foot and mouth devastated farming. Alan Toft Director general Federation of Wholesale Distributors {{LETTERS }}

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