This is my response to the recent Co-operative "Dear Member" letter, and sent to the Forest of Dean District Council.

'I recently received a letter from the Midcounties Co-operative, urging me to raise with you my objections to the Asda planning application.

On the contrary, I wish to register my full support for the application! In doing so I refer to the Co-op letter, which I am sure you will have seen and which I assume forms the basis of the upcoming High Court submission.

I found this letter misleading, offensive and patronising! I note that there has been no such communication from Asda. Furthermore, I understand that nationally, the Co-operative has something of a track record of objecting to new supermarket developments.

I shall endeavour to be as brief as the subject allows.

I, and everyone I have spoken to on this issue, would welcome an alternative to the Co-op supermarket in Cinderford. I have yet to hear a contrary view expressed.

The letter claims that the Co-op has been "an integral part of Cinderford for 140 years". Yes, they may have been here that long but I would challenge the "integral part" claim. They remain the only major supermarket simply because of their aggressive anti-competitive practices:- I refer to the Tesco and Sainsbury debacles and now the Asda bid.

All of this may be fine in the cut-throat retail business world but it does little for the consumer – the latest Which Supermarket survey scored the Co-op bottom for customer service, choice and value-for-money. This is not about saving Cinderford, it is about saving the monopoly which the Co-op enjoys and of course, it is about money!

They also claim in the letter that another supermarket would "take the heart out of the town". This is highly disingenuous since, by swallowing up the Post Office, travel agent and most of the pharmacy services in the town haven't the Co-op already done that?

The letter also refers to "out-of-town developments".

The proposed Asda sitecan hardly be described thus, being at the opposite end of the High Street from the Co-op. Rather than take people away from the town centre, an alternative supermarket might encourage locals (and visitors from nearby towns) to shop in Cinderford instead of going to Lydney, Ross or Gloucester to obtain a better service – as we and many of our friends currently do.

In summary, I hope that the Asda proposal does not go the same way as did the Tesco and Sainsbury ones. A lot of local people are fed up with the "take it or leave it" attitude from the Co-operative and would welcome the introduction of choice from whatever quarter.

In conclusion, I welcome the present Government's plans to simplify and speed up the planning process. This and other fiascos, notably the Northern Quarter, demon­strate that such a move is long over-due. I dread to think how much we, as Cinderford taxpayers, must have spent on consultants, planning officers, bureaucrats and lawyers over recent years and all, so far at least, with no tangible benefit.'

– Chris Rich­ard­son, Cinderford.