Store opponents put case to Tesco

Tesco corporate affairs manager Felix Gummer met a group in Torrington at the Mole and Haggis bookshop.

The company wants to build a 30,000 sq ft store in the town which it says will create more than 300 jobs.

But opponents say just as many jobs will be lost and it will destroy a local swimming pool and football field.

Store impact

Torridge and West Devon MP Geoffrey Cox has backed calls by the town council for an inquiry into the plans.

Tesco's proposed superstore would be on the site of a local football ground, swimming pool and children's play area called Vicarage Field.

Mr Gummer said the facilities would be replaced and people were already travelling out of the town to its store in Barnstaple.

Speaking after the meeting, one of the protesters, Roger Hickman, said: "We just got a lot of platitudes wrapped up in sound bites.

"They seem convinced that Tesco will enhance Torrington, but I am not."

Torridge District Council is conducting a survey to assess the impact of a store on the town before making a decision.

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