SINCE your article 'Safeway threatens to pull out of Pickering' (Gazette & Herald, February 8), several letters have appeared, including one from P T Coombes (Gazette & Herald, March 8) which is a typical example.

To set the record straight, at no time has anyone from Safeway, myself included, threatened that Safeway would pull out of Pickering if the planning application for a new store is not granted. PT Coombes accuses us of being 'dictatorial', yet his letter is deliberately misleading. There is no doubting that the Gazette & Herald did use the above headline on February 8, thereby, perhaps, playing a role in misleading the public, but PT Coombes relishes the opportunity to wilfully misuse the information. What I was actually quoted as saying is: "there are no plans to close the store at the moment, but if the railway closed off the Ropery, a store on the present site could become unviable." Where in that statement have I said that Safeway will leave Pickering "if it is denied planning permission for a new store", as PT Coombes claims?

To clarify the issue, Hilary Sanders asked me about a rumour that Safeway were threatening to pull out and requested my comment. I informed her that no such threat had been issued but explained the very real circumstances that should the railway be reinstated through Pickering town centre, thereby removing the Ropery car park, it would present the existing store with a problem so serious it is entirely possible, in the long term, that it could become unviable.

This is not the same as threatening to pull out if we don't get our own way, as PT Coombes and Philida Norman (Gazette & Herald, March 1) have claimed. Shame on them! Over the last few months, on these letter pages, we have been falsely accused, among many other things, of being arrogant and adopting scare tactics. Surely this example clearly illustrates that the only people willing to resort to scare tactics by wilfully misrepresenting the facts, are those opposed to our scheme?

While I'm putting pen to paper, I have counted that since September 2000 PT Coombes has had 11 letters printed in the local press, and other ardent objectors, J Arundel 10, and Nena Wood 7. Just because our supporters have better things to do than write letters and attend public meetings, it does not mean that they don't exist. Now who's being arrogant?

Updated: 11:15 Thursday, March 22, 2001