Stolen scissors proved shoplifting was never a career option for me

Some people have been up in arms about Iceland’s back door being closed. Stealing from shops and supermarkets is, apparently, rife throughout the town with meat being a major problem in this respect. Well, shoplifters beware! Last week I learned that one store in the town is patrolled by a mistress in the art of karate.

I’m not suggesting that she’s a killer but I confess I’d hesitate to tangle with her myself.

I have only once stolen something from a shop. I was in my teens and it was a pair of scissors. Every time I used those scissors I felt a twinge of conscience.

Eventually I threw them away. Clearly, shoplifting was never to have been a career option. “It’s wonderful to see how the town’s showing a steady upmarket progress,” said a chap in County Square the other day.

“Poundland, Savers and now B&M and Smiggle on the way, along with the usual rash of cheap Christmas pop-up, here-today-and-gone-tomorrow shops.”

Did I detect a note of sarcasm in the gentleman’s tone? Or was he really celebrating Ashford’s steady rise in ostentatious affluence?

It is obvious that retailers looking for appropriate sites in towns do their research. They would seem to be assuming (correctly?) that Ashford is a pretty downmarket sort of place.

Our town centre people are happy to fill empty shop premises with something – anything – that’ll pay rates and reduce the dismal effect of empty shop windows on the High Street, as made clear by the plethora of phone shops and hairdressers.

Extending the McArthurGlen outlet stores as planned will further damage the town centre, but who cares?

The thousands of people destined to fill the thousands of houses being built will drive off to Bluewater, Canterbury or Maidstone to do their shopping once they find our roads thoroughly congested and discover that, anyway, there’s no place to park here.

‘Extending the outlet stores as planned will further damage the town, but who cares?’