THE fight to keep Marks & Spencer on Accrington’s high street has ended with councillors accusing the retail giant of betraying customers.

Council chiefs sat down for crunch talks with Tony Ginty, head of public affairs at Marks & Spencer, but were told the company’s decision was final.

Leader Miles Parkinson said: “We wanted to meet with Mr Ginty because we were hoping to persuade him to keep the Accrington store open, even if this meant moving to a Simply Food model.

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“There is a lot of investment going into the town over the next couple of years and we really hoped Marks & Spencer would play their part in supporting that investment by staying in the town centre and modernising their store. It became pretty clear early on in the meeting that the decision to move has already been made.”

Cllr Peter Britcliffe, leader of the opposition, said: “We know that the store pays very little rent, and that it is still profitable. There seems to me to be no good reason why the company should not refurbish the store, concentrate on its most profitable lines, and stay loyal to its customers.

"Their decision to move will no doubt seem like a betrayal to many of those customers.”

Town-centre boss Cllr Clare Cleary gave Mr Ginty a petition containing more than 1,000 signatures. She said: “While I did not expect miracles, I hoped the company would listen to what we had to say and go away and reconsider their decision.”

Last month, Marks & Spencer announced it would be quitting Accrington after more than 50 years.

It said its planned new store in Rawtenstall offers a better experience for customers.