PLANNING permission granted last Thursday for a Chinese takeaway in Williton is to be challenged by a local businessman.

David Gliddon said this week that he was applying to the High Court for a judicial review to halt a change of use for the building at 21 Fore Street – formerly Davies’ Newsagents which closed earlier this year.

His move came after West Somerset Council’s planning committee unanimously approved an application from a prospective buyer of the property, Taunton businessman David Huang, for a change of use for the shop.

Until recently, Mr Huang ran a Chinese takeaway in Bishops Lydeard and now wishes to open a similar business in Williton.

This week, Ashfords of Exeter, solicitors for Mr Gliddon’s company, J Gliddon and Sons, wrote to Mr Huang pointing out that Gliddons, who own two adjacent properties, objected to the planning application and now intended to challenge the council’s decision in the High Court.

A copy of the letter, seen by the Free Press, said: “Our client’s full grounds for seeking to challenge the decision will shortly be set out in a detailed pre-action protocol letter to West Somerset Council.”

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Full story in the Free Press (June 3)