With reference to your article “What could the high street of the future have to offer you”, might I suggest your conclusions about the demise of the High Street are correct without change. However, currently the online suppliers are massively subsidised compared with the High Street in terms of taxation, local business rates and corporate taxation due to their carefully designed location and corporate structure, meaning the High Street pays for much of our local services whereas the online suppliers pay nothing.
We also give the famous white vans free access to our roads and streets meaning they deliver probably 18 hours a day, seven days a week. Worse, we let them break all on street parking laws and regulations; incredible. Some countries limit this access. For example, in Switzerland, commercial vehicles of any type are banned from all roads on Sundays and Bank Holidays and have limited access to the towns and villages, on week days. The local council has to repair the damage this traffic causes. Furthermore, I am told to get rid of my diesel car so that increasing numbers of these diesel-powered white vans can deliver a small parcel in the village etc.
John Beadsmoore, Cambridge
