Complaints raised over social distancing at Sutton Asda

Ashfield’s MP Lee Anderson has written to Asda officials after receiving scores of complaints and Facebook comments about the Priestsic Road store.

The MP said he feared that staff and shoppers were “at risk,” and that he had never had so many complaints “by a mile” about one single issue.

Mr Anderson said: “I couldn’t ignore complaints about Asda, or sit back as the MP and do nothing whilst people are dying in Kings Mill Hospital,”

“I was told by constituents that shop at Asda how bad it was, so I went to see for myself. I used to shop there myself, but not anymore.

“They are letting too many people in at once, they are not looking after employees or the public by not properly adhering to the Government’s advice over social distancing. It’s just profit over people.”

One ‘concerned shopper’ raised issues with the MP over the queues for the post office and cigarette kiosk claiming breaches of the two metre rule.

“The shopping experience at Asda in Sutton in Ashfield is disorganised chaos, if there is any chance of catching anything, then shop at Asda they seem to have got it all wrong,” he said.

Mr Anderson also visited Tesco in Mansfield, and Morrisons in Mansfield, Kirkby and Eastwood, and Wilkos on Outram Street, Sutton in Ashfield.

“The other supermarkets were run like military operations, with proper queuing, limiting numbers into the store, and using one way systems and strict rules at the checkout stopping people getting too close. I had no complaints about them.

“I raised the social distancing issues with Asda a few weeks ago, but nothing was done. I have just had a response from Asda’s public affairs manager. They have now invited me to the store, but to be honest, it feels like I am being fobbed off.

“It’s an important issue, so I have reported it to the local authority and trading standards.

“I have 70,000 constituents to think of here.”

Asda has been contacted for a comment.