Member

Cohesion is very quickly lost, and the retail offer withers. Where do the shoppers go when the retail offer withers? They go to the retail parks on the edge of town. Bus stops are provided there, too. Tempting fast-food offers are now provided on most retail parks. There is plenty of parking, but it is absolutely useless for community cohesion. The mums with their prams, the elderly residents taking exercise in the high street, meeting their friends, stopping to have coffee: that withers along with the high street. The high street mix of goods and services disappears. Estate agents, hairdressers, nail bars and massage parlours replace them, leaving a completely empty local offer. This natural balance of retail, which hinges on the anchor, can be judged only by the local authority, not by the Treasury.