Rising rent is tactic to close market

I am also of the opinion the people responsible are using diversionary tactics to reduce the number of stallholders so that when closure comes costs will be reduced.

I feel that, listening to stallholders over the last couple of years, the raising of rents is one of the council’s tactics. It is a shame a Labour-controlled administration doesn’t consider the needs of the elderly who not only like to shop at the market but use it as a means of social contact with friends. If only they had the foresight to realise that if you provide potential stallholders with realistic rents, more stalls would be used and there would be more footfall. Just look at Bury Market: the idea of a town market is not a dead duck.

I am convinced most councillors of a certain colour have no business acumen and don’t understand how to create a good trading environment.

Alan Hardman