Will Tesco ‘ place obstacles in the path of business growth’?

DEAR Editor,  Several recent letters to the editor, including mine, have talked about the deleterious effect that the proposed Tesco development, if given the go-ahead, would have on our vibrant High Street in Thame. Quite rightly, the focus has been on the potentially adverse effect on small shops and other retailers on the High Street, which would become the victims of any large out-of-town shopping development.

However, not much has been said about the effect on businesses. Thame is a prosperous market town and levels of unemployment are low. This prosperity feeds through into the retail environment and shops and services of all kinds benefit. Because of Thame’s proximity to London, there will always be commuters, but there are also many businesses located in or near Thame, and this translates into local employment opportunities, which, I suggest, are a major factor in making Thame an attractive place to live and work. We have all seen on television images of towns where unemployment is high and the ruining effect that this has on town centres.

Many businesses in Thame are located in the industrial area that lies adjacent to the Eastern Bypass / Wenman Road areas, and the proposed Tesco development would occupy a large site which is currently home to a number of these businesses. These range from significant employers like DAF Trucks and other globally-known names such as Kubota to SME businesses of many kinds. The fact that Thame is home to such a rich and varied range of businesses is something to be prized, not shrugged off lightly, because of the attractions of locally based employment that they afford. If the Tesco development went ahead, where would these businesses go? Their current positioning is ideal, being edge of town but within easy distance of housing and shops. The last thing we need to do in these economically still uncertain times is to place obstacles in the path of business growth – rather, the existence and advancement of local businesses should be fostered and encouraged. To contemplate uprooting sustainable businesses and sending them elsewhere (perhaps away from Thame) is simply bad business and bad for Thame.

Helen Johns 
Tetsworth