SIR — With the news that Lidl has been granted planning permission to build a supermarket in Minehead, surely the time has come for David Gliddon to gracefully accept that there is no need for his supermarket in Williton. When the Lidl supermarket is built near to Tesco and Morrisons in Minehead, there will be a real choice of supermarket shopping from budget to quality, all within a short distance of each other and all of them a short drive from Williton. The Lidl store will have an impact on the current shops in Williton but, as with the impact that Tesco and Morrisons had, they will survive it. However, should Mr Gliddon get his own way and be allowed to build his supermarket in Williton, it seems to me that there can only be one outcome; Spar and Co-Op will close, along with the newsagent and possibly the post office. I fear that the 'double whammy' of an additional supermarket in Minehead and another one on their doorstep will be too much for these shops to survive for any period of time. Those shoppers not wishing to shop online or travel to Minehead, Bridgwater or Taunton will be left with only one choice – the supermarket which will have a local monopoly for grocery shopping, which is not a good thing. The retail impact report has yet to be returned by the consultants, and I hope that it will now take into account that there will be an additional supermarket. There is a definitive number of shoppers in the area, and the retail space available to them will be increasing very soon, with the number of people now shopping online, as the evidence of supermarket delivery vans constantly in the area suggests, surely another supermarket in addition to Lidl cannot be justified – there is only a certain amount of shoppers to go round! There is a strong possibility that Williton would lose its last remaining bank as Lloyds is reluctant to relocate, as it would need to should the development go ahead. This would create a very difficult situation for the remaining local businesses, many of whom still use the bank two or three, if not more, days a week. Personal customers of the bank would also find it difficult without a bank in the locality. I know that David has invested a lot of time, energy, emotion and money in pursuing this project, but surely it is time for him to accept that the supermarket development is not necessary and withdraw his application. If he does not withdraw it, I do hope that the planning committee refuses permission and saves Williton from the disaster that his supermarket development would bring. Louise Martin, Station Road, Williton.