A local campaigner is re-igniting his opposition to the planned Morrisons development after claiming the supermarket giant is ‘dragging its heels’.

Barry Greenwood(pictured) who was a key member of pressure group Keep Abergavenny Livestock Market (KALM), has been pressing the local council on what he feels is a deal shrouded in secrecy.

The 73-year-old claims the deal is ‘rigged’ in favour of the supermarket firm, with opposing voices brushed aside to accommodate Morrisons.

Mr Greenwood, who has long opposed the deal, said the lack of information coming from Morrisons is a cause for concern.

“There must be something going on which we are not being told. Under normal circumstances there would be a huge marketing campaign, they’d be bombing people with leaflets and the like to drum up support ready for the opening.

“Maybe they’re compelled to build a store, against their preferred wishes. After all, they signed a contract. But things have changed since then,” he said.

The deal to bring Morrisons to Abergavenny was finally sealed late last summer after four years of wrangling between the supermarket and Monmouthshire County Council, punctuated by legal battles brought to the table by the now defunct KALM group.

Mr Greenwood said he was a ‘key member’ of the group fighting to stop a Morrisons development on the old cattle market site, and admits he has been in opposition to the plans since they were first mooted in 2013.

Despite Morrisons repeatedly insisting the store is going ahead as planned and workmen now appearing on the site, Mr Greenwood said his opposition hasn’t wavered, adding that the supermarket’s well publicised changes to their business model meant they were ‘stuck’ with honouring the £18m contract.

“Morrisons paid way over the odds for the land. It would be a potting shed to them, given their usual aircraft hangar standards. Something is going on. And they don’t want to talk about it.

“Why are they so reluctant to talk about it? I don’t think they want to come here,” he said.

“Monmouthshire County Council will not back out as they want the money, and would look extremely foolish. It would be political suicide. They don’t want to admit they were wrong.”

His strident opposition, he said, stems from what he perceives is a ‘threat’ to the livelihoods of local small businesses and market traders.

“It’s not a trivial matter for a town of Abergavenny’s size. I’ve said for years it will close a lot of local stores and hammer a lot of traders. They are there to make money for shareholders and zoom off. The whole thing is rigged in their favour.”

The long-awaited deal was finalised last August for £1m more than originally agreed, after Morrisons originally missed a payment deadline earlier that year, forcing a renegotiation with the council.

The firm has given £13.75m up front to build the 25,000 sq ft store with another £4m due over 25 years. The new store was originally planned to open its doors later this year.

Abergavenny’s historical cattle market was controversially moved to a new £5m facility ten miles away in 2013, rendering the town centre site derelict since then.

After Morrisons missed the July 2016 deadline, campaigners called for a rethink over the plan, mooting a housing and retail development to take its place.

At the time, the council’s deputy leader Bob Greenland said the delay was due to ‘market difficulties’ suffered by Morrisons in a ‘challenging’ economy, and that extra time was needed for a new management team to ‘revisit their strategy’.

This week, land excavators and teams of surveyors have been spotted working at the site amid local rumours that Roman remains have been found.

Requests for comment from both MCC and the Morrisons press team were not met at the time the Chronicle went to Press.

Last week a spokesman for Morrisons said she was ‘awaiting an update from the property team’ and promised to ‘update’ when she could.