CONSTRUCTION work on a Tesco store in Bordon could begin next year, after the government gave the go ahead to the application.

The long wait for a decision has finally come to an end, with campaigners celebrating a victory in bringing the supermarket giant to the town.

Outline planning permission was granted by the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, Stephen Byres, last Friday.

In the report from the Government Office for the South East (GOSE) Mr Byres said that he agrees that the only possible site for a Tesco is the Bordon Motors site.

He also said that district council planning officers have Òproperly exploredÓ and were right to reject the site next to the Forest Shopping Centre as a home for the supermarket.

The report also says that the impact of Tesco on nearby Somerfield would be minimal and Òis likely to leave the store trading comfortablyÓ, which would ensure the vitality of the rest of the centre.

ÒThe vitality and viability of the Forest Centre as a whole is not likely to be seriously affected to a degree which harms investor confidence or would warrant withholding planning permission,Ó the report said.

However Mr Byres said that there is Òno evidenceÓ that Bordon needs an additional supermarket, although he conceded that the town should be treated as a special case.

ÒIn respect of retailing need the secretary of state considers that the intention to provide a store to compete with stores in surrounding towns in order to claw back expenditure does not constitute need,Ó isaid the report.

Mr Byres disagreed with the planning inspector, Michael Calshaw, who conducted a planning inquiry into the application in May, that the need for Tesco was to attract shoppers back to Bordon and to maintain it as a sustainable shopping area.

However, he said that he agrees with the inspector that the supermarket would have a positive impact on traffic and the economy of the town.

ÒIn respect of these issues the secretary of state notes that about 50 per cent of convenience expenditure is leaking away from Bordon to nearby towns and that, at present, Whitehill/Bordon offers significantly less to shoppers than do competing centres,Ó the report said.

ÒThe secretary of state also notes that the leakage is predominately in the form of Whitehill/Bordon residents driving to other centres to do their shopping and that 3.2 million vehicle kilometres per year would be saved by the proposed store.

ÒAlthough the proposal does not fully accord with the advice in planning policy guidance, the secretary of state is of the view that, in the particular circumstances of Bordon, these issues can be considered as material considerations and are of sufficient weight to overcome the policy objection.Ó

News of the success of the application spread through Bordon like wildfire as shoppers finally learnt that they were lucky second time around.

Many were left stunned in 1999 when the then secretary of state, John Prescott, accepted a recommendation to reject the proposal for a similar store on the same site.

But planning policy changes and the construction of Lidl paved the way for permission to be granted.

The store will be 2,599 square metres and provide parking for up to 199 vehicles.

It will open seven days a week and will provide a range of goods, but will not have dry cleaning facilities, a post office or an in-house pharmacy.

The next stage for Tesco is to complete its design drawings and submit a detailed application for approval.

East Hampshire District Council expects that a detailed application will be submitted within the next six months with construction, which it is hoped will begin next year, taking a further six to nine months.