by Catherine McMillan
WHEN I think of protests and demonstrations, I generally have visions of bricks thrown through windows, cars rolled on to their roofs and set ablaze, water cannon, chants, waving placards and riot police.
In Hadleigh they are a bit more civilised. In the latest stage of the anti-Tesco campaign, Hands Off Hadleigh arranged ... a protest picnic.
Families and campaigners gathered on the riverside to highlight the peace and tranquillity which will undoubtedly be affected by the building of a superstore, while enjoying a Thermos of tea and a sarnie (presumably either homemade or bought from an independent sandwich shop).
I have to confess that until recently I didn't have much of an opinion on the vexed matter of whether Hadleigh should have a Tesco.
I can't say I'm a great fan of Tesco. I don't have any axe to grind: the staff are always friendly and helpful, but shopping in the Sudbury store was always a chore, something to be endured.
So we defected to Waitrose. Which is lovely. And there has been virtually no difference in our food bills at all. If you put your blinkers on and ignore the fancy stuff, you'll be fine. Last time I checked, a litre of milk was 79p at Tesco. And at Waitrose? 79p.
So no need to go to Tesco then. However, I do favour supermarkets over smaller shops. I want to get my food as quickly as possible, and I need to be able to do it after work. For reasons I have never worked out, most shops still close at 5.30pm. But most people work till 5.30pm. This isn't the 1950s, with women free to do the shopping during the day, in between scrubbing the house.
Try to buy bread from a bakers at 6pm. You can't. The supermarkets have twigged that people need much greater convenience in this day and age.
So to Hadleigh. Well now that I have moved to Edwardstone, halfway between Sudbury and Hadleigh, shopping in Hadleigh has become a possibility, and I have been stirred into having an opinion.
I don't want another Tesco – there's already one in Sudbury so it wouldn't be giving me any extra choice. And I also don't think the riverside is the right place for development. But I don't think townspeople should have to go without the convenience of a supermarket, although Hadleigh does already have Buyright and the Co-op.
So I'd like to propose a third way. The campaign for an Asda or Morrisons starts here! Who's with me?
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Weather for Sudbury
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Light snow
Temperature: -3 C to 0 C
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