During the next fortnight, independent inspector David Bushby will hear evidence from the supermarket chain, government departments and organisations opposing the scheme.

The inquiry will establish the impact of the scheme on traffic levels around the Lake Road store and on local retailers, to decide whether it meets planning guidelines.

Mr Bushby will compile a report and make recommendations to the Council of Ministers.

Preparatory meetings held last year to find as much common ground as possible between the parties were frequently stalled by disagreements.

Mr Bushby criticised the lack of progress at the last meeting in December, saying it had led the inquiry to a 'point of uncertainty'.
He also added a new twist by labelling the relevant planning guidelines in the Douglas Plan of 1998 as 'very ambiguous'.

Skeleton arguments were submitted by each party last month, but the inquiry still promises to spark heated debate over the effect of Tesco's application on traders and motorists.

Tesco wants to raise the roof of its store to create a 2,000 square metre mezzanine floor.

Its proposals include a customer café, two small ground floor extensions and a decked car park for 566 vehicles.

In-store improvements would include a new deli-counter, extended meat and fish counters, wider aisles, bigger display areas and new lines of non-food products.

The company has argued its proposal would boost the economy by creating 250 jobs.

Opponents usually counter that supermarkets destroy more jobs elsewhere in an economy than they create.

A report commissioned by Tesco calculated that the expansion would, by 2014, take £10.1 million (6.9 per cent) of trade away from retailers selling similar goods in Douglas.

It concluded this was 'acceptable' as stores in Douglas were 'trading well and are capable of withstanding a degree of impact without planning concerns arising'.

But Douglas Council, one of the parties opposing the plans, said it was 'very concerned' about the effect on the town centre and sales of non-food goods in particular.

It argued the expansion would give Tesco 14.5 times as much non-food floor space as at present, equivalent to 11 per cent of all non-food floor space in Douglas town centre.

This meant the scheme represented 'domination rather than competition', the council added.

According to Tesco's figures, rival Shoprite — which is also a party to the inquiry — stands to lose 10.5 per cent of trade (£1.98 million) by 2014 if the scheme goes ahead.

Tesco predicted shops in Ramsey, Peel and Castletown would also lose trade but this would 'not result in any undue adverse impacts on the vitality or viability of existing centres'.

However, local authorities in those towns have objected to the scheme, claiming it would kill off independent local businesses.

WHO WILL BE THERE?

• Tesco. The supermarket will call a board member and experts in retail and traffic.


• Department of Local Government and the Environment and Department of Transport. Representatives will call experts in planning policy, retail and traffic.


• Heritage Homes. The developer will call retail and traffic experts.


• Isle of Man Chamber of Commerce, Douglas Development Partnership and Douglas Council (represented together). They will call retailers and experts in retail and trading impact.


• Shoprite. The Island's indigenous supermarket group and Tesco's biggest competitor will call a retail expert and possibly a traffic expert.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Send your comments to newsviews@newsiom.co.im

YOUR COMMENTS

Tesco is a bit like the retail version of how Dandara is percieved, ie. of all the builders it seems Dandara seem to get a much tougher time to get through planning with objections, other builders seem not to have this problem, Tesco is the same.

Thier proposals look to have been thoroughly researched in terms of parking, expansion and access etc. The last item seems to be what the objectors are focussing on to defeat them.

Traffic flow in that area is not great but it is bearable, the fact that Tesco want to expand thier range surely cannot be a bad thing, I expect if you asked the population of Douglas they would welcome it.

The catchment area is limited, its in no way comparable to extending or building a new store in a uk town, there are only so many people who will go to tesco at any one time.

Over Xmas the only problems I could see at the height of busyness was that there wasnt enough parking in Tesco carpark, this is a rare occasion however.

What doesnt help with traffic movement is the silly proceedure if you are travelling from the Old Castletown Road and turn left where you are forced to do a 180 at the roundabout and come back on yourself, the buses negotiating this is also not the best plan Ive seen.

There was talk of Tesco adding a seperate entrance from Peel Road or even accross the river by the business school, has this been considered?
Tescos plans have been knocking around for ages, Dandara have also had an arduous time getting thier plans through planning and have had to make concessions like road improvements etc.

It would not be beyond the scope of probability that in including Tesco, Dandaras housing, the bus terminal and the other small businesses in the area the planners underestimated the potential traffic flow in the area.

There is also rumour that a petrol station was to be incorporated, hallaleuya, about time we got some independent competition and lower the cost we have to suffer in this area of retail.

As to the other retailers I would say that I will still shop in town for the things that I like and need, I expect others will do the same and there wil be no need to be concerned.

Good luck Tesco.
TTASH

I don't remember all this fuss when Shoprite added their mezzanine floor at Douglas!
LIZ

Yes, Good Luck Tesco. And LIZ you are right, there wasn't a fuss........ funny that?
TESCO LOVER

More money wasted at tax/rate-payers expense just to make a few Douglas Councillors and Commissioners look like they are actually doing something ! If some Island shopkeepers are concerned about the competition then all I have to say is - Welcome to the Free Market economy ! All Tesco are doing are increasing their service offering (and employing more local labour who will pay Manx tax and NI) at a reasonable cost. Why is this such a difficult and bitter pill to swallow ? If punters wish to seek other "non-food" items cheaper at Tesco, then local retailers will have to bring added value to their products (such a free installation, servicing, customer care, etc.). We have had to deal with the "like it or lump it" attitude of some retailers over the years and unfortunately it is they who will have to change their practices and service standards, not Tesco. Send these whinging "manx crabs" onto the infamous "boat in the morning" and let's see if the Isle of Man government are really serious about "Freedom to Flourish" (or does this only relate to non-U.K. companies ?)
THE VOICE OF LIBERAL REASON, Onchan

Ok so how many Shoprite stores are there on the Island? Seven? Compared to Tesco's grand total of… erm… one. Shoprite really do have a nerve complaining about competition on that basis. I'd suggest that the directors of Shoprite take a long hard look at their stores before they start jumping down a competitor's throat. Shoprite's stores are awful looking things inside and out – they look like a Kwik Save or a Lidl and really don't say 'Manx Pride' to me (no wonder the staff always look so miserable). Then there's the products they sell – the fruit and veg is terrible (I often find things rotten before the use by date), and pretty much everything else is overpriced for a) what you get, and b) the quality of the goods. Maybe they're onto something by incorporating Iceland into their range, but it's a shame that the quality there is also generally quite low. If Shoprite really want to entice customers back they need to modernise. Desperately. And then start getting in some decent quality goods for better prices. Until they do I will continue to shop at Tesco (and M&S) unless it is an absolute emergency.
STEVE

Why don't Douglas council stop objecting to what peolpe want,i.e tesco and sort out what we need like the health agreement with the UK. It just goes to show how out of touch the council are with its peolpe, every time this subject appears on this website it always has people wanting the bigger store. The internet is the biggest threat to I.O.M treaders, not tesco. What are the going to do next stop everyone buying of the internet.
LIAM

If the Northern Irish retail expert considers Tesco in Lake Lane to be an out of town development, which jurisdiction is Shoprite in Victoria Road in?
SLIGHTLY CONFUSED

Generally, when I want to purchase non food items I use the internet, as I am fed up with paying for overpriced goods in the high street. Perhaps if Tesco was allowed to expand, and there are goods available locally at reasonable prices I might be persuaded to change this attitude. The present situation offers very little economic benefit to the Isle of Man, and by simply trying to force things to stay the same will probably not change this. There may well be an economic positive to the expansion by encouraging more people to shop locally. Still if the Isle of Man does want the money I am sure that there are many UK companies who will be happy to take it, via the internet.
PC

Shoprite have made no effort to bring themselves into the 21st century. No online shopping, no local deliveries along with less than average looking stores. As for Douglas Council- What have they done over the last ten or twenty years to make the 'shopping experience' in the Strand Street a pleasant one? Parts of the street frequently stink of sewage. The street is dowdy and for those shoppers travelling by bus there are no toilets near the bus station. Oh I'm sorry 4 £80,000 closets have recently appeared if you have 20p with you. Wow,what an effort! Good luck Tesco.
JSW

Well some of us like Tesco, and some of us like Shoprite, which is better???? There's only one way to find out!!
F I G H T!!!!!
MR H HILL, Onchan

Shoprite heve set the precedent by being allowed to double the size of their floor space at their Peel store so It only seems fair for Tesco to be allowed to expand.
EMKAY

PC is right to say that if Tesco cannot expand and bring in a few more non-food goods, then all that will happen is greater use of the Internet for buying. We'd all like to buy locally but at prices nearer those in the UK. The anti-Tesco lobby want to watch they don't frighten off the one competitor to Shoprite.
STEVE H

I for one shop at Tesco. They have more choice of items, more staff willing to help you out and they have a better quality of items. If it was M&S that wanted to expand would Shoprite be opposed to that too?! How about the new Sports Direct store, who's going to oppose that? Or the bigger Top Shop store? People choose where they want to shop, we don't get told where to shop. The amount of people that shop, get food delivered from Tesco's prove this. If I don't find items I want in Tesco I go straight on the internet and get it delivered. I don't even bother going into town as that is a waste of my time and money. Why should I be forced to pay over the odds for items when the shops in Douglas can't be bothered to have healthy competition. At the end of the day everyone is thinking the same thing. Let Tesco's expand.
JO - A TESCO, INTERNET LOVER

I totally agree with all the comments – long live Tesco! Shoprite stores are appalling, the food second rate, the fruit and veg are below terrible! We need more competition. Most people have to exist on tight budgets. Why are Dandara/Heritage involved they seem to be able to do just what they want. Stop wasting our money and get on with saving the health service.
SUE DUNN

Shoprite have had it easy for years, and I totally agree with SUE DUNN. Apparently Shoprite "know we have a choice" or so the posters say in their stores. Yes Shoprite, we know we have a choice too and most of us have chosen Tesco and it's nothing to do with it being Tesco it could be any other chain. It's to do with a CLEAN and modern store, FRESH fruit and vegetable and GOOD VALUE for money.
TESCO LOVER

Are we stupid ? All money in Tesco goes off the Island. They pay lip service to the Island. what will happen to Strand Street or the Town Centres if the new store they are planning on buiding goes ahead ? The extension alone is bigger than M+S and will sell everything.This is not about food shopping. Just think how many jobs will be lost.How much do they spend within our economy?
MOST CONCERNED, Manx Resident

After listening to both sides of the argument I can only see one answer to this contentious issue. Tesco must not be allowed to dominate the local retail market. Tesco's purchasing power allows them to squeeze margins in every area, from dry goods to fresh produce and into white goods. Tesco competes in a price competitive sector; naturally residents will flock to the cheapest and widest selection. The uninformed might believe that Manx retailers have been inflating their prices, as they've never had a serious competitor. The problem which lies at the heart of this argument is that Tesco continues to absorb their Isle of Man operating costs. How long can they continue to do so, before realising doing so is no longer viable? Would Tesco, in the future, inflate their prices to cover the cost of transportation or scale down the operation? The fact remains that could the Isle of Man become solely reliant on Marks & Spencer and Tesco, should any other retailers no longer exist? These questions should be asked to the wider community since it is them who will make the decision. Island retailers have already seen the impact of Tesco since they first moved into the market. Quality of service has diminished, as everything now revolves around price and price alone. Retailing on the Isle of Man is never going to be able to compete with UK chains; we have the Steam Packet to thank for that.
DOROTHY

With the current VAT shortfall the island is suffering, should the Isle of Man be encouraging growth in the UK economy or the Isle of Man economy? If the island trades amongst itself then those revenues are kept on the island, whereas Tesco takes the revenue back onshore. Should the island invest in Tesco shares or its own people? The job creation Tesco boasts about has yet to be fully justified. The majority of the expansion will employ part-time employees. If a major island retailer were to fail, what will be the actual employment benefit of the Tesco expansion be? Further job losses will only apply further pressure to the islands already precarious welfare scheme. Tesco already has 30% of the UK supermarket sector, how much does it already have in the Isle of Man? Is the Isle of Man at risk of becoming the world's first Tesco Island? How long will it be before Tesco applies for further planning permission on the island? By letting Tesco expand in the manner that it wants consumers in the short term may benefit in more choice, but in the long run suffer less choice as more and more island retailers fail. It has been proven on a number of occasions that Tesco has yet to perfect their logistical models to the Isle of Man. Maybe a mutiny by island residents will resolve the problem...
FLETCHER CHRISTIAN, Pitcairn

Dorothy, Most Concerned and Fletcher Christian are all living in the past or wearing rose-tinted spectacles. Where does the majority of income generated by the Financial Services Sector (particularly Banking and Insurance) go to, and where do the profits from M&S, Waterstones, Intersport, Boots, Costa coffee, WH Smith, Mothercare, HMV, Monsoon, River Island, Next, etc,etc,etc, go to. Oh yes, hang on, that'll be the U.K. as well then! We are all global citizens living in a globalised economy whether you like it or not. Market forces lead the way and if a retailer wishes to expand (AND employ additional Manx resident workers who will pay Manx Income tax and Man National Insurance) then that is what is known in the rest of the developed world as competition. If you dislike the practices of Tesco then you have a choice as a consumer to shop elsewhere. I suggest that this is a more practical use of your energy, rather than lobbying to stifle legitimate business opportunity (whether it is "local" or "from across").
THE VOICE OF LIBERAL REASON, Onchan

I don't understand FLETCHER CHRISTIAN,DOROTHY comments about the revenue going of island, what about all the people they employ on the island, the money they spend with local transport companies getting the goods onto the island? As for killing of Strand street, its already dead, how many local shops are there down town(they only sell tit for tat anyway), because I recon you could count them all on 1 hand and would not be affected by Tesco expansion.Douglas town centre is full of companies from across any way, HMV,NEXT,M&S need I go on.As for effecting the rest of the island trade well that's Shoprites doing, look at Ramsey has got to big Supermarkets, Peel which has just got a bigger shoprite and down south which has got a big shoprite and a wilko's. Thats whats killed of local high streets not tesco. Get real! Tesco can bring us what we want, some where decent to shop.Tesco bring alot of money to this island just like all the big banks etc. So you manx crabs give it a rest.
LIAOMA

I would just like to comment that yes, it is true that Tesco do not pay IOM tax on their revenue however for all the staff they employ, they may MANX ITIP which is what every Manx citizen pays when they pay their salary every month so Tesco do contribute to the island economy, it may not be as much as some people would like, but they do contribute. Tesco should be allowed to expand although with like anything on this island that wants to make it better, the councillors are opposed to it so yet again, I doubt it will be allowed and the Manx people will once again suffer for it. I wish the people doing this enquiry would ask the people that live here and not the politicians who seem to be against anything that is good for this island.
CC, ONCHAN

Apart from the blatant mis-truths about extending the existing site ( it's actually a re-build) and the massive impact on the local economy, there has been a previous statement from Tesco that during the alterations there will be a temporary store on the existing car -park. How absurd. Where then are their customers going to park? I can foresee a continuous queue of traffic waiting for a turn to use the few remaining spaces, the queue probably extending along the Quay and Lord Street Additionally, over recent years there has been massive investment, in time and finance promoting the I LOVE MANX, Buy Local, Manx to the Max etc. etc. Where are the supporters and advocates of this faith going to shop when the Manx traders have been annihilated by this mammoth without morals?
MICK

Instead of begging supermarkets to stock manx produce it is about time there was a decent covered market to sell manx produce in, preferably one in the north and in the south. Shoprite, Robinsons and Ramsey Bakery have wiped out dozens of small local businesses over the years. I should know, Robinsons opened a shop next to the fruit and veg shop I worked in and put them out of business. It wasn't just the job losses that were bad it was the loss of the large nursery and greenhouses which had been in operation since before the War which are now lost for good. B&Q also saw off most of the hardware shops and paint suppliers in many towns as well. Unfortunately for some of the businesses in the Island they will have to adapt and if they don't the internet will probably cause as much of an impact if not more than an expanded Tesco. If Shoprite are really worried about competition they should sell out to Asda or Sainsbury then we will finally have some real choice.
EMKAY

The majority of the public seem to favour Tesco's expansion. I would agree with that. I am fed up of paying 'island prices'. There is need for improvement of access to the Tesco site, perhaps a single lane exit to Old Castletown Road by the business school. If the planning application is denied, I would laugh and cry at the same time if Tesco decided to pull out of the island. Then we would ALL suffer increased prices and less variety. Some say that Tesco's takes money off the island, but sure as hell Shoprite and the Co-Op don't source all their products locally. Others might worry, such as Colebournes, Waltons etc, but their prices are way too high, and I can buy what I want off the internet including shipping for less. Good luck Tesco.
RAMSEY RESIDENT

I assume that Heritage Homes' participation in the Tesco planning inquiry is as an objector to the expansion scheme, presumably to minimize the impact on their new Quay West development? If so, how deliciously ironic that this company, which has ridden roughshod over local residents' objections for years, now finds itself on the receiving end of such treatment. It will be interesting to see how their imported and highly-paid experts fare when up against a bigger and more powerful opponent, for once. I do not agree with a previous comment that Dandara/Heritage Homes are at a disadvantage when it comes to planning battles: if anything, the reverse is true, they appear to have the upper hand thanks to their extensive resources. I hope they receive a healthy dollop of their own medicine, just as I hope Tesco's expansion is approved in the name of competition.
MANXCAT

The tesco debate will never have an outcome to suit all parties, however the government of India recently had the same issue as we are now facing,let tesco into the subcontinent and lose all the small traders?No they recognised what a fine balance there is in small communities that rely on local shops and the contribution made to the community as a whole.Tesco were banned from setting up in India. tesco may be large employers but mostly part timers and retired people, and they are quite astute in managing the hours that employees work so that they dont pay much tax and national insurance.The isle of man does not get any corporate tax from Tesco it all goes to the scottish government ensconced in Whitehall.And that leads me nicely to the other major issue, Now that Scotland and Northern Ireland have independent Parliaments and home rule will they be knocked out of the health agreement like us?I am glad that someone in the manx government has at least come up with a positive idea by way of this travel levy,but the question must be asked what about those of us that pay an annual travel insurance as a matter of course,we dont actually need any more insurance,and i dont think that you are allowed to be insured twice for the same thing.
MW, Douglas

MW, we don't rely on small shops though do we? Unless you are counting Boots, M&S, Waterstones, HMV, River Island, Top Shop, Thorntons, Holland & Barratt, Clintons, TKMAXX, as small traders!! We don't rely on small shops here, and we can't. We are totally reliant on the likes of Tesco. Co-op. M&S and Shoprite (which is not Manx to the Max) whether you want to believe it or not.
TESCO LOVER

Re The Observer Comment- There is no issue or argument with Tesco selling convenience goods. What is the technical definition of convenience goods as I find my fridge quite convenient.
INTERESTED TO KNOW

It is good to see from Liam's comment that the Shoprite training appears consistent across all of its stores. Perhaps it should brand itself as the 'stores with real attitude'?
OBSERVER 2