I'm glad Julian Hunt welcomed the government's wise decision not to extend Sunday trading hours for large stores (Opinion, The Grocer, 8 July, p3), as it was also a victory for thousands of Usdaw members across the UK.

Usdaw made clear its opposition to ­extending the present six-hour limit from the moment it was announced that there was to be a review of the compromise agreed in 1994.

We started our campaign by asking our members what they thought and 95% said they were opposed to any extension because shopworkers wanted to spend time with their families on that day. That survey of 4,000 members also found 80% already had to work on Sundays and many felt under pressure to work even when they didn't want to.

But Usdaw also asked Britain's shoppers what they thought in an independent opinion poll and we found that 64% were happy with the existing limit.

Thousands of Usdaw members wrote to their MPs asking them to oppose any increase to the current Sunday limit and we were delighted to secure the support of 290 MPs from every political party who signed an Early Day Motion opposing extended shopping hours.

Our campaign was built on outstanding research relying on facts rather than emotion. Usdaw made a detailed and effective submission to the government's cost-benefit analysis examining the economic implications of longer Sunday hours.

We sent a team of reps to an open consultation held by the DTI at Westminster, reminding ministers of our solid case against longer hours.

Our 340,000 members are delighted that the government agreed to keep the existing limit after consideration of all the arguments presented. In the end, our members worked hard to make sure MPs were aware of their strong feelings against extended Sunday shopping. Their efforts secured an outcome that means they can continue to enjoy a decent work/life balance that most people take for granted.