A representative of Lidl supermarkets says he does not believe the proposed new store in Ashby will have an impact on the town centre.

The nationwide bargain chain wants to build a new supermarket on the Ashfield House in Resolution Road - which is scheduled for demolition if Lidl gets the go-ahead to build.

A formal planning application for the scheme has yet to be put to North West Leicestershire District Council.

But Marcin Koszyczarek, from planning agent Rapleys LLP on behalf of Lidl, spoke to Ashby de la Zouch Town Council's planning committee on Monday night to answer questions from councillors.

Mr Koszyczarek was asked by committee chairman, Cllr Dave Bigby, if Lidl planned to make a financial contribution to ease the effect on town centre businesses.

Cllr Bigby said that Aldi had made such a gesture when building their new store - which will be just across Nottingham Road from the proposed Lidl.

But Mr Koszyczarek said: "It wouldn't be something we would offer up at the beginning of the process.

"Things have moved on in the retail world, it isn't used that often unless there's a specific project the money could be attributed to.

"It's not used very often now. This scheme is not showing any impact on the town centre at the moment."

Cllr Bigby also asked if cycle access could be improved around the site for the store from the town centre.

Mr Koszyczarek added: "If the Highways Authority feels there is any need for improvements, I wouldn't see any major issue with that.

"We negotiate these things once the application has been made, but in principle, yes, we've done it before, there wouldn't be any objections to providing improvements."

But Cllr Tom Stanley asked what measures would be taken to enter the car park and leave the site.

He pointed out that the area around Nottingham Road, Dents Road, Resolution Road and the A511 is already a bottleneck.

The planned supermarket would be within a site that neighbours rivals Tesco, Aldi and M&S.

Mr Koszyczarek said: "The assessments show there is capacity to accommodate a Lidl foodstore without any adverse impacts, but it will be scrutinised by the district council and highways.

"We've put our reports in and we'll have to answer any queries during the planning application process.

"So far, we haven't observed any significant impacts in terms of modelling."

Cllr Carl Benfield asked if any carbon footprint calculations had been made with demolition of one building in mind - and the building of a new one.

He also questioned if Lidl had thought about using the existing building. 

Mr Koszyczarek said: "Using the existing site would not work for any retailer - because it was a purpose built building used for business.

"There was talk of repurposing the current one, but it's not a standard building, it was done specifically for that company.

"There were too many constraints, the only way Lidl would make it work, would be to demolish it. As for the carbon footprint, I'll be honest, I haven't looked into this."