SIR - There is another aspect to the refusal of planning permission for a vet’s clinic at Sidmouth Garden Centre: do we really want to sow the seeds of an out-of-town shopping/business centre?

Some time ago the garden centre provided space for a butchery there, and this was just at the point that a new lease was being signed for the butcher’s shop in Sidford. It was no surprise that the incoming butcher backed off. One more shop gone in Sidford.

There is a vet’s clinic in Sidford; within easy reach of a capacious car park and within walking distance for a lot of pet owners.

Do we want that, also, to disappear? There is a perfectly good car park in Temple Street, a brief walk from the Sidmouth vet’s clinic; I use it and walk the short distance with a cat basket. It is not the problem that some imagine. Many pets can be taken there without requiring a car.

How many pet owners are likely to walk to a clinic at Sidmouth Garden Centre? Let’s face it: they’ll drive. Is this something we want to encourage?

Stella Huyshe-Shires

Sand, Sidbury