Ilkeston shops campaigner criticises BBC for 'dreadful picture' of Ilkeston

A long-term campaigner for removal of empty shops from Ilkeston Town Centre has levied fierce criticism at BBC East Midlands Today, accusing it of painting a "dreadful picture" of the town.

Joe Cahill, admin for the 'Ilkeston's Independent Shops' Facebook page said he watched the report on a catch up service having been made aware of it.

He questioned how many people were spoken to by reporters before they found someone who claimed that "all the shops have gone" and criticised the camera shot which pictured a building society behind her, the property only boarded up because an unoccupied car had rolled backwards into it a few weeks ago.  

Mr. Cahill said he felt that the footage had been set up to make Ilkeston look bad, and said that the final piece broadcast failed to show a busy South Street and its recent development work, nor did it show scaffolded shops that were being refurbished, or give reference to the new shops that have opened up in the last couple of years.

But the well-known campaigner, who, separately, said that "untold damage had been caused to our high street", pledged a determination to prove the local BBC reporter wrong. He added: "Why didn’t they focus on the real reason the town looks so unloved; the absent landlords around the country who sit on once beautiful buildings allowing them to deteriorate but refusing to repair them knowing the council will keep securing them and making them safe at our expense. But we will show them. With or without 'Levelling Up' funding, Ilkeston is fighting back."

The Facebook page aims to promote local independent shops, suggest the types of business really needed in the town and is used to encourage local entrepreneurs to open them as well as to make the local shopping experience great again for local people.