Traders decry 'bad wolf' tactics

CITY COUNCIL ACCUSED OF BULLYING AND STAFF HARASSMENT IN MARKET STAND-OFF

- By OLIVER PRIDMORE

ONE of the last businesses remaining at an under-threat Nottingham market has accused the city council of 'bullying' after their electricity was cut off.

The council says it is taking legal advice to make sure all its actions in relation to the Victoria Centre Market are “legal and appropriate”.

Only a handful of traders remain at the historic market, which dates back to the reign of Henry II and which has been in its current location since the 1970s. The city council owns the site and said it would be closing on March 31.

Rejecting compensation offers they say are inadequate, a small number of traders chose to stay beyond the closure date and court action has begun as some apply for a new tenancy.

As the stand-off continues, one trader says the council has started behaving like the “big bad wolf”.

Rajesh Dhingra, co-owner of Mona's Beauty Bar, said he was alerted to the electricity being cut off by his staff on Saturday.