Axing market short-sighted

I am writing with regard to the proposal by the Canterbury City Council of removing the street market in the centre of Canterbury.

It seems to me that the council has not considered the current economic plight of many of our residents who rely on food banks and government assistance to meet their financial needs.

Street markets are famously good value for money, as they obviously do not have to bear the overhead costs of supermarkets and can therefore offer produce at lower prices. In these inflationary times when costs are spiralling on all fronts, a street market seems a no-brainer.

It appears to me to also be rather short-sighted in its approach. The centre of Canterbury is not an appealing place to shop at the moment, and hasn’t been so for some years. The proliferation of fast food outlets, the boarded-up shop windows, the streets which remain dirty and unwashed, do tend to lend an air of neglect to what should be the pearl in the crown of the district.

The risk is that all that footfall is going to switch to Faversham where there is already a thriving street market and where people naturally move from the market into the local shops, for the benefit of all. Moreover, the shops are themselves interesting and varied and attract customers on their own merit.

Some of the decisions made by the council have not borne the fruits of the hoped-for profits. Getting rid of the street market

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