The Government has turned down a plea by Shropshire Council to call in Oswestry’s four superstore planning applications.

Council officials today said a request to have the applications considered at the same time by a planning inspector had been denied.

At the end of last month the county council wrote to government planning officials with the request after one of the applicants, J Ross Development, decided to appeal against refusal on plans for the Central car park.

The other applications for a new supermarket include the Smithfields livestock site in Shrewsbury Road; timber firm Richard Burbridge’s land at Whittington road and the car firm JT Hughes and guttering firm Guttercrest combined sites on Victoria Road.

Shropshire Council believed considering all applications in one forum would be fairer.

Now the J Ross application will go to a planning appeal while the three other applications will be heard at the end of October by Shropshire Council’s strategic planning committee.