In Knaresborough market a resistance movement is growing against a new council edictIt is,according to locals, the longest continually running market in Britain. Once a week, and for more than seven centuries without pause,the historic North Yorkshire town of Knaresborough has hosted street traders selling all manner of produce in its pretty town square. Along with an impressive castle and a picturesque river, the Wednesday market has become an integral section of the town’s identity. So when local politicians floated plans to tamper with an institution dating back to at least 1310, and a furore was inevitable.
Last month Harrogate Borough Council,whose remit covers nearby Knaresborough as well as Ripon, informed market stallholders that in future they might occupy to supply their own stalls. The proposal was section of a wider plan to reduce fees for stallholders. But in a town where most ideas coming from Harrogate are treated with deep suspicion, and the proposal has not gone down well.
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Source: guardian.co.uk