PROPOSALS to re-locate Northallerton's auction mart to land off Thirsk Road, on the town's southern boundary, were rightly rejected last week.

It was a simple decision for the district council. The site is open countryside outside the area previously considered suitable for development. The outcry from residents in the St James' estate area was understandable, if perhaps not wholly justified.

What does the mart do now? The chances of a successful appeal appear remote but it does need to move - for a number of reasons.

The first of these is that the town centre site is cramped compared to other, more modern and larger, marts being developed in the North of England. This week we report that plans for Thirsk mart's relocation to an out-of-town site are well advanced

The second reason is that the existing site is the key to unlocking land needed for retail development at the southern end of the High Street. And thirdly, the residents near the existing site will be happy to see it go.

For many years, it was widely accepted that when the mart did move it would be to the light industrial zone off Darlington Road - indeed specific provision has been made for this in the Hambleton Local Plan.

However, the auction mart does not the own the land in question and the Thirsk Road option was the most commercially-attractive option for a company which has had a hard time of it lately. It should not be forgotten that for almost a year during the foot-and-mouth crisis it had virtually no income from its livestock auction activity.

While the mart needs to let the dust settle on its abortive mission to move to Thirsk Road, the council should perhaps also recognise the mart's plight and that the benefits of a suitable re-location will be felt throughout the area.