Letter: Large store levy

I NOTICE that Donald Anderson, whose consultancy firm acts for Sainsbury's, and Terry Murden in his comment column (20 January) add their names to the criticism of the Scottish Government's proposed levy on large stores.

Following the widely reported comments of Justin King, chief executive of Sainsbury's, I contacted that company and through its media unit received a response which rather neuters the threat to reconsider its Scottish development programmes: "Scotland is still a growth area and our plans for new stores still stand."

The company spokesperson went on to say that the levy represented "a significant and unbudgeted financial burden".

As the owner of a small business, may I welcome Sainsbury's to the real world.

Most of us live all the time with significant and unbudgeted financial burdens such as hikes in fuel, taxation and bank credit charges, currency fluctuations, withdrawal of bank support, and customers going bust, etc.

Graeme McCormick

Conveyancing Direct

Morrison Street

Glasgow