HAS Southampton City Council really given permission for Morrisons to open yet another food store in Portswood, on the old Blockbuster site?

If so, why? Who can for one moment consider that another food outlet is required – there is Waitrose, Iceland and Farm Foods in the immediate vicinity ie. literally just the other side of the road.

Move along a few yards and there is a Co-op and then a large three-level Sainsbury’s.

In between there are further smaller stores also selling groceries and fast food. In addition there are almost innumerable fast food outlets and restaurants, and on top of those there are pubs. Go a few yards in the other direction and there is an Aldi and a Tesco.

There are uncomplimentary words to describe the action of the council – and yet they turned down an application a couple of years ago for a Lidl on the car park behind the High Street.

To add further insult to the local community, Morrisons have applied for a licence to sell alcohol from 6am to midnight – yes, I do mean from an incredibly early hour in the morning – whilst the vast majority of the population are sleeping in order to enable them to get up and do an honest day’s work – until this very late hour in the middle of the night.

There are so many outlets for alcohol from all the above mentioned stores, who can require anything more?

There are no police in Portswood over the night-time hours – who will be dealing with the drunken chaos?

Has the accident and emergency department at the hospital agreed to this? Will they have extra doctors and nurses on every night?

A recent report has shown very clearly that Southampton has major issues with alcohol – very nearly the worst city in the entire country. Is our council encouraging this city to take the bottom place in this respect?

To enable the store to be open at 6am they will be receiving deliveries from heavy and noisy lorries from at least 5am, and staff will be arriving at that sort of hour also.

Is there any consideration for the local community – we suffer enough with drunken, bawdy, vomiting inconsiderate vulgar individuals. We are the people who are trying to work – we pay our taxes – for what?

These issues have to be addressed – or is Southampton to sink further into depression and become a sink city?

Dr J Parker, Southampton