Act now to support local shops and communities before oil prices hit the supermarkets

The Church of England in Essex and East London has alerted policy-makers to the impact that a reduced oil supply will have on supermarkets and local shops.

Against the background of local opposition to plans for a new supermarket in the Bradwell area of Essex, The Bishop of Bradwell, The Rt Revd Laurie Green, has issued a wake-up call to think long-term and act now to create a sustainable future that is not based on the illusion of future oil abundance. And he supports the national Church’s decision to review its own investments in retailing.

The big supermarkets offer customers good value and quality not only because of intensive farming, rigorous cost-control and economies of scale but because untaxed fuel allows them to transport goods to local communities cheaply.

As local shops disappear, supermarket dominance continues to attract the attention of the Office of Fair Trade. The Competition Commission has found practices among supermarkets that it regarded as against the public interest and it has recommended a code of practice.

While supermarkets are substantial employers, local clothing suppliers, as well as food producers, complain about the global forces that make local production unaffordable. 

Local democratic planning authorities that turn down applications from the big stores can lose on appeal or give up because the costs of opposition are prohibitive.

But the oil will run out and rising oil prices will make global transportation to the big supermarkets unsustainable. Meanwhile roads will have been built to serve out-of-town shops and local communities will have lost many of their remaining small retailers.

The Rt Revd Laurie Green said: “We can’t ignore the impacts of a reduced oil supply on the high street, local communities and roads. We must act now to create a future that is sustainable and not based on the illusion of future oil abundance.”

In May the Church of England’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group will be reviewing the Church’s investments in food retailing.

Download this article by the Bishop on this topic - In The Kingdom Of The Shopping Trolley.

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