Mrs Dean has long fought for retailers within the Waitaki electorate to be allowed to trade on Good Friday and Easter Sunday, which the Shop Trading Hours Repeal Act 1990 prevents them from doing. Wanaka has always been Mrs Dean's "main target" for the changes, since Queenstown has an exemption to the trading restrictions because of its tourist resort status.
"I made a commitment to the people of Wanaka when I first became their MP ... that I would keep working on that until I got some changes ... and here we are six years later and I'm not going to give up," she said.
Mrs Dean's second member's Bill - her first was defeated in 2007 - to amend shop trading laws within the district had been drawn out of the ballot earlier this year and would go before the House in the next few months.
She planned to withdraw Good Friday from the Bill to improve its chances of being passed.
"I'm trying to get as much support for the Bill as I can because, of course, it's a conscience agreement so I'm trying to do a bit of horse trading."
This weekend is one of the biggest for Wanaka, with the Warbirds Over Wanaka airshow bringing tens of thousands of people to the town.
"A good number of whom will want to shop and will be denied the opportunity unless retailers are prepared to disobey the law to open," she said.
The alternative for retailers was closing and missing a "really wonderful retail opportunity".
Chamber of Commerce president Leigh Stock said the Wanaka business community had fought unsuccessfully for years for amendments to the Act.
"We've tried and tried and tried to make some changes but it's falling on deaf ears," he said.
Seven of the 12 Wanaka retailers contacted by the Otago Daily Times yesterday planned to open on both Good Friday and Easter Sunday. One planned to open only on Good Friday and four said they would not open either day.
The Department of Labour issued a press release yesterday which said it would not release advance details signalling its plans for identifying shops not complying with the Shop Trading Hours Repeal Act.
