Following concerns raised by residents, Cllr Alexa Michael contacted the relevant Council officers to establish why this situation has occurred. An application by Budgens to vary the terms of their planning conditions to allow newspapers to be delivered between 6am and 7pm was refused by Bromley Planning earlier this year. Council officers informed us that, while the decision on delivery timings was finely balanced, it was decided that deliveries earlier than 7am would not be permitted, given previous concerns around early deliveries. The Council could not commit to the necessary enforcement action if breaches were to occur. Budgens is within its rights to appeal the decision, and Cllr Alexa Michael has written to them to offer assistance. To date, she has not heard back from them.

Cllr Alexa Michael said: “I wrote to Budgens to ask them to reinstate the newspaper deliveries because I know that many residents depend on this store for basic items. You would expect a convenience store like Budgens to stock newspapers! They could have them delivered at 7am, in line with their existing planning permission. To date, I have not heard back from Budgens, which is disappointing.”