Quote Originally Posted by ayjaykay View Post
I think most people nowadays prefer the convenience of Tesco instead of having to go to separate grocers/butchers/whatever (and having nowhere to park when they do so). Whether that's a good thing or not I don't know, but it's a fact.
Well indeed...it's convenient to dump used-fridges by the side of roads, it's convenient to piss in the sink, it's convenient to do a lot of things...
I think you lived abroad you might see 'convenience culture' as not such a great aspect of the British way.

Remember a lot of older people in this city don't have cars and would like to be liberated from the fear of going out after dark, by a high-street of busy night-time activity rather than a killed-by-supermarket retail-free dead-zone populated primarily by boorish drunks and scary-looking gangs.

Admittedly there ARE many lazy-arses who get home from work and just want a 5min microwave supper, but there are also many who don't mind a bit of cooking and who GIVEN THE CHOICE and wouldn't turn down the chance to purchase some decent local fresh ingredients at around half the price the supermarkts sell them for- but, of course, you very soon don't get that choice when a multiple scews the market.

It should be written into the contract for Tesco to operate in cities that they can only buy already existing properties on the high-street, and franchise them to local grocers et al to make a success out of. And that they can only continue operations if their activity stimulates small independent competition.