The future of retailing at Heathfield has been put under the spotlight after Teignbridge Council said the trading activities of Mole Valley Farmers and Sparkworld were under investigation.

The estate is designated ‘employment land’ and firms must concentrate on manufacturing or warehousing. Teignbridge is to examine the range of goods on sale and the amount of space given over to retail trading.

It has also moved to stop Prestige Furniture altering the internal layout of its building to increase the retail area despite members of the development control committee voting in favour of the plan.

Prestige’s owner, Robert Ash, has confirmed he will challenge Teignbridge ‘at the highest level’ if his application is rejected and has set aside £30,000 to hire barristers to expose what he says is the council’s contradictory stance.

He told the Advertiser that on July 27 a memo from the council’s economic development unit to the head of planning said: ‘We would not oppose this application on the grounds that they are not asking to add space but for a change of use of the space they already occupy.’

Yet when the application first went to the council’s development control committee in August that advice had been reversed.

‘How can they just change their minds like that?’ said Mr Ash.

On Monday the committee met again and voted 15 - 9 in favour of Prestige but leader of the council, Cllr Alan Connett, stepped in and together with the other four objectors had the matter referred to the full council for a final decision ‘as a matter of principle’.

But with Mole Valley Farmers and Sparkworld already trading nearby several councillors questioned whether Prestige Furniture was being given a fair hearing.

Cllr Vic Elliott said: ‘If we refuse this will we close down Mole Valley? What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.’

Planning officer, Jill Day, told the meeting: ‘The activities of Mole Valley and Sparkworld are under investigation.’

Sparkworld’s co-founder, Marian Crausaz, said her company would cooperate with an investigation but that it operated well within the rules, paid well and questioned the council’s direction: ‘Where will they stop? They’ll have to close ATS as well because they sell tyres,’ she said.

Pointing out what she thought was another anomaly she said: ‘They also said this area wasn’t meant to have residential development here but they’ve allowed that. They can’t have it all ways.’

Nobody from Mole Valley Farmers was available for comment.