Two of the UK’s biggest supermarket chains have warned that the cost of the weekly shop could increase if Scotland becomes independent.
Asda and Morrisons, which have dozens of stores across the north and north-east, said they would have to pass on the extra costs of operating under a foreign regulatory and tax system to customers.
This means that the price of basic items such as bread, milk and tea could increase if the business model used by the two retail giant changes in wake of a Yes vote in the independence referendum stays the same.
Asda chief executive Andy Clark said: “We believe in fairness, so the price customers pay for a pint of milk or loaf of bread is the same regardless of where they live in the UK.
“However, the cost of doing business in different parts of the UK does vary.
“A Yes vote in 2014 could result in Scotland being a less attractive investment proposition for businesses and put further pressure on our costs.”
Morrison’s chief executive Dalton Phillips said: “If the regulatory environment was to increase the burden of the cost structure on business that would have to be potentially passed through to consumer pricing.
“Why should the English and Welsh consumers subsidise this increased cost of doing business in Scotland?”
North-east Labour MSP Richard Baker, a director of the pro-UK Better Together campaign, said any increase in food prices would “hit hard-pressed families”.
“This is a stark reminder that our food costs are competitive thanks to our membership of the UK and this is under threat from the SNP’s plans,” he added.
Shadow Scottish Secretary Margaret Curran urged First Minister Alex Salmond to publish any assessment of the impact of independence on the cost of doing a weekly shop.
But a Scottish Government spokeswoman insisted there was “no reason” why retail prices in an independent country would be any higher than at the moment.
“We are already delivering the most competitive business rates regime in the UK, and our plans for an independent Scotland include proposals for lower corporation tax and for a fuel duty regulator to cut transport costs,” she added. “This means Scotland would be more competitive and less costly than at present.”
A spokesman for Tesco said it would “create the best offer” for customers whatever the outcome of the referendum.
Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “The reality is that independence will provide the means to create a prosperous economy and better business environment, one that will deliver benefits for consumers and retailers alike. Supermarkets operate in competition with each other, and you can be sure if one chain has higher prices – for whatever reason – then their competitors will not be slow to take advantage of that.”
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