High Court judge reverses council approval of Aldi plans
A High Court judge has ruled that East Lindsey District Council failed to consider plans for a Lidl supermarket when granting planning permission for an Aldi in Horncastle, prompting the courts to withdraw the application.
Lidl and Aldi locked horns over a parcel of land in Horncastle that both saw as a potential supermarket site in 2022, which began a two-year legal and planning process battle between the two chains.
Despite assurances to Lidl that both applications would be heard together by East Lindsey District Council planners, Aldi was granted permission to construct a site on Spilsby Road in November 2022.
Lidl claimed it had no knowledge that this approval would be granted, and agreed to several planning decision extensions before seeing Aldi given the green light.
This prompted a legal challenge that ended up with both parties, as well as East Lindsey District Council, at the High Court for verdict in July 2024.
The judge ruled that the authority had failed to consider Lidl’s application and reversed Aldi’s planning permission.
This means that both parties will now have their plans reviewed in full at the same time before any future decision is made, but only adds time to the wait for a new supermarket in Horncastle.
The Aldi plans had received nearly 300 letters of support during the consultation process, further highlighting the demand for extra supermarket provision in the town.
An East Lindsey District Council spokesperson said: “The council recognises the High Court’s decision on this case, and will not be appealing the result.
“We anticipate that the application in question will now be re-submitted to be determined by planning officers and the committee, although a timescale has not yet been set for this process.”
A spokesperson for Lidl said: “We are fully committed to bringing a new store to Horncastle and are therefore pleased with the court decision.
“This means our application will now be considered by the planning committee, ensuring that both applications are determined equally. We look forward to hearing the next steps laid out by the council.”
A spokesperson for Aldi said: “We are disappointed by this decision. Our public consultation showed that the people of Horncastle really want an Aldi store and we have a deliverable scheme ready to go that is now being stalled unnecessarily.
“We remain committed to investing in the local community and will continue to work to bring unbeatable value and award-winning quality to Horncastle as soon as we can.”