MAY I congratulate your leader writer on the comments about the conflict between supermarkets and local businesses.

When I was a youngster I studied economics and concluded that capitalism was the third biggest evil facing mankind. I have not changed my opinion through the years. I was surprised that so many small business people supported the system.

We must face up to the fact that supermarkets have closed down most of our shops and their suppliers, especially in the farming community. Whenever a plan for a new supermarket is presented to the council we are told it will create 'X' number of jobs. I support the calculation that it destroys three times as many jobs as it provides. Many other shops in the area close down.

When I was young there were corner shops in every street. I can, as an example, recall eight Co-op shops, including one mobile in Farnworth. Co-op members shared the profits according to how much they spent. How we looked forward to our 'divi'.

A lady from another local shop called for our weekly grocery order which was delivered. The butcher's boy brought our meat. Shop delivery boys on their bikes were a common sight. The farmer called with milk and eggs. The fruit-man, soap-man, bread-man and tailor all called in their vans, horse-driven vehicles or bikes. There were many more people employed in the retail trade with its delivery service in those days. The supermarkets changed everything.

The local business people served the community and spent their profits in the Bolton area. The profits from supermarkets leave Bolton and go to the owners abroad, or millionaires in their tax-havens. I fear we may finish up with only one chain store, American owned, controlling the price of food throughout the world.

I have not got the answer to the problem and, until I read the BEN leader, I wondered if anyone but me worried about the future. Keep up the good work BEN. Our local business people will certainly receive no support from the foreign-owned, capitalist, morning gutter press.

Another worry is that the BEN will be bought by some foreign capitalist and we will lose our local roots.

We need the BEN.

George K Brown

Barncroft Road,

Farnworth,

Bolton.