As a parent and a proud citizen of the historic town of Shrewsbury I am concerned about the impact that the proposed lap dancing club will have on the town, and what it will mean for the future of this community.

It is widely acknowledged that clubs of this type promote undesirable influences, including retrogressive attitudes to women, exploitation of the vulnerable and the proliferation of sex- and alcohol-related crime, crimes of violence and anti-social behaviour. These venues often only constitute the legal veneer for much more troubling underground activity and any community that doesn't already have a significant problem with this type of sordid underworld would be well advised to avoid it indefinitely.

Shrewsbury is a very small place in a predominantly rural setting and the placing of this venue right in the centre of town and next door to a large college where children aged 16 to 19 are in daily attendance make it impossible to avoid. The proposal has been strongly opposed by the West Mercia Police, who, like all public services, have experienced dramatic budgetary cuts in recent years and yet the Tory council, who imposed these cuts, have now granted the licence for this club without any consultation with the Council Tax paying public, and without any consideration for the concerns of their own Police Service, and this is undiplomatic and has led local residents to suspect that financial incentives may have been offered by sex trade entrepreneurs to council bosses to approve the licence.

At present there are no clubs of this type in the area, the nearest being around 50 miles away in Birmingham, meaning that it will attract customers from the very large and heavily populated areas of Telford and Wolverhampton, and the town is simply not equipped to deal with the number and type of people that will be drawn here, and why should we? Why should the Council Tax payers of Shrewsbury, where wages are chronically low, foot the bill for all the extra policing that this massive low-life element will require? And it's only a matter of time before demand exceeds supply, and more of these clubs spring up and yet another British town, with a proud history and a hard-working community, is sacrificed on the altar of greed and degradation.

Please sign this petition, and stand up for the people of Shrewsbury who want to raise their children in a clean-living environment, and not an embarrassing, sordid slum.

Thank you.