Silsden has waited a long time for its own supermarket. Now two companies – Aldi and Tesco – are both vying to build in the town.

With this week’s slightly undignified exchange of words between the applicants, the bid to develop a store in Silsden seems to be descending increasingly into a direct – and potentially bruising – contest between the two retail heavyweights. While each puts forward its case for building, sight must not be lost of the most important factor in all this – the public.

At the end of the day – with full consideration, naturally, of all planning matters – the potential effect of each scheme on the town’s residents, businesses, economy and facilities has got to be paramount in all deliberations.

Each should be judged on its own merits and, yes, we may have a situation where both are approved.

Whatever the outcome, there must only be one winner – Silsden.