Sir,

In reply to the letter published in last weeks issue, 'Out of town retailers ruin tourism', I strongly disagree with the statement that the town having a McDonald's will take away its historic value.

I don't see how this is possible as the new retailers are going to be on the outskirts of Monmouth and the main tourist attractions are positioned within the town centre.

Tourists are not going to come to Monmouth and see the establishment and think 'oh we're not going there they have a McDonald's'. It's bizarre.

Most residents of Monmouth are happy with the plans to go forward and I can guarantee that if it happens, I will see most, if not all of you in there.

I will also say that it is a cheaper option, which in this day and age people are most likely to go for. Will businesses lose custom? I don't think so. Businesses can take this as a challenge and improve.

I think that people need to stop being so negative about the subject and consider it as an improvement rather than a problem, it's time to stop living in the dark ages and expand.

Kelly Angel

(Monmouth)