Star comment: Right move to save the village pub

This haunt of squaddies from the Army base on its doorstep is closed and boarded up, just another one of Shropshire's hostelries to have turned off the beer taps for good.

Few would count the Stormy Petrel as one of Shropshire's most picturesque pubs, nor is it ancient, but for years it served its clientele until time finally passed it by and it joined the company of all those pubs within the county which are currently closed, boarded up, and have For Sale, To Let, or Business Opportunity signs on them.

Full credit then to Bal Singh who has seized this particular business opportunity, has bought the building, and plans to invest in the site. His initial thoughts are that it could be given new life as an Indian restaurant, although he has not ruled out the possibility of reopening it as a pub.

In villages and small towns where pubs have closed, there has been a strong strand of local feeling that they should be kept as pubs, and those who have sought to convert them into houses have run into planning difficulties and in some cases been refused planning permission. You can sympathise with both sides of the argument. We all want to see thriving village pubs but on the other hand sentimentality pays no bills. How can you compel people to run loss-making businesses?

The upshot is an impasse, a sort of planning game of chicken in which the building remains a boarded up eyesore.

In relation to his future plans, Bal Singh says: "Everything depends on what planning permission I get from the council."

Well done to him for taking on this project. And in whatever form the Stormy Petrel flies again, it is difficult to conceive that it could be worse than the current situation – and councillors should bear that in mind as they ponder whatever planning application he may make.