I HAVE just seen what I consider to be the most pathetic response to the public outcry concerning the removal of the benches. A couple of fold down seats here and there is not the answer and if the owners of the centre think it is I suggest they think again.

The feeling of being welcome in there went out the door with the seats and that is where my shopping has gone too. It is absolutely dreadful in there and the atmosphere of silence in place of the familiar faces and voices does not inspire me one little bit.

If space was what the owners were after they have certainly got that. The people I have spoken to are all of the same opinion. It is nothing to do with what the local inhabitants want and the excuse the owners give does not hold water. My apologies to the shop keepers there but I am left with no alternative but to avoid shopping in there until common sense returns.

At this time of the year there is of course the chance of sitting in the square but when the bad weather returns that is when the absence of people will become more noticeable.

Being the owner of a mall does not mean one should dictate to the customers what they believe is good for them but consider the views of the people as a whole and by what I hear the owners have got the whole sorry situation wrong.

The vast majority want the seats there for many reasons and it's not just the old and infirm but the young and fit ones too.

Brian Jones