Sir Terry Leahy: small shops closing is ‘part of progress’

Channel 4 News has asked its social media followers to respond to Sir Terry’s views, which he made in a Desert Island Discs interview with Kirsty Young.

Asked if seeing boarded-up shops made him sad, Sir Terry said: “It does but it is part of progress. People are not made to shop in supermarkets, they choose to shop there.

“High streets – some of them are medieval and the way that we live our lives now is very different, so what you have to do is make sure the benefits do outweigh the costs, and I think that they do.”

Channel 4 News asked people on Twitter what they thought of the comments – and several of the responses we cannot publish on the grounds of decency. Overall the response to Mr Leahy’s comments were negative:

@channel4news when local shops are being closed and replaced by those ghastly Tesco Express stores, where else does he intend we shop?

— Natty W (@Natty_W) February 3, 2013

@channel4news thats a backward thought process.The High Street brings the community together for face to face conversation.

— Global Tribe (@BEVMCDONNELL) February 3, 2013

@channel4news idiot.If the supermarkets weren’t able to force prices down automatically by threatening producers them they cdnt b so cheap

— Rona Hunnisett (@FluffyRona) February 3, 2013

@channel4news haha! Give him a tight budget to feed a family for a week & see where he ‘chooses’ to shop

— Gary Busey (@seancourt) February 3, 2013

However, not everyone disagreed. Users on Facebook argued that Sir Terry is “quite right”.

“High streets don’t need to die, however, they need to evolve into some where that draws people by the interest they provide through non-mass produced stuff,” said Dugaldtheelder Ferguson.

Chris Jones argued: “We can’t keep ruing the death of the high street while not shopping there. I don’t want to see rows of boarded up shops – nobody does – but beyond nostalgia, what is the real reason why we want to save them? What crucial purpose do they serve?”

Unpackaged, are an organic refill shop and cafe, tweeted that though people choose, “it is not a level playing field for all shops”.

@channel4news Yes they choose to but it’s not a level playing field for all shops. We were blocked from opening a site by one supermarket…

— Unpackaged (@Unpackaged) February 3, 2013

@felicityspector @unpackaged @channel4news What we don’t need is mre shops….lets reduce twn ctre rates + consolidate into gd shopping area

— Secret Seed Society (@SECRETSEEDsoc) February 3, 2013

@nothankstesco @channel4news maybe its time for local high streets to fight back and #MakeTescoHistory. We’ll see who’s medieval.

— #ShopLocal (@GBShopLocal) February 3, 2013

@channel4news don’t believe it People will come back to the High Street if it evolves into a true shopping experience, a leisure activity

— duona (@duona61) February 3, 2013

Since June 2008 the vacancy rate of UK shops has risen from 2.8 per cent to 14.2 per cent at the end of December 2012.

Some on social media argued that the problem for the high street is not the supermarkets, but the rise of online shopping.

Teresa Louise Wright wrote on Facebook: Teresa Louise Wright “Death of the high street is down to online shopping…. look at pubs, soon as supermarkets made their beer cheaper the pubs suffered, now online shopping means small shops suffer first but eventually, supermarkets will suffer too!”

@channel4news #c4news “death” is overused term. More “realignment” in wake of online. Inevitable with too many duplicate UK High Streets

— Miya Knights (@mazzaknights) February 3, 2013

What do you think? let Channel 4 News on Twitter or Facebook, or at our Google+ page.