THE application to place an ice cream van in Abergavenny town centre by a man who complained about a Monmouthshire councillor for his attitude towards it was turned down yesterday.

Ice cream van enthusiast Chris Copner, who lives in the town, complained about Grofield councillor Douglas Edwards because he did not back his plan to park a bespoke £85,000 van on Red Square on High Street.

But his plan to open from Monday to Saturday as well as the occasional Sunday, which he said was to generate more tourism in the town, was turned down by members of Monmouthshire council’s licensing committee after it said his preferred site was inappropriate.

He told the committee that he wanted to draw attention to the illegal ice cream vans parked around the town: “I want to highlight the illegal traders currently in Abergavenny. I brought them to the licensing committee in January 2013 and the same vehicle was still operating this month.”

Objecting on behalf of Abergavenny Town Council, Cllr Maureen Powell, who is also a county councillor, said: “This town is a town that a lot of people visit and the high street is the main part of the town. The ambience is that people can walk to and fro freely.”

Cllr Martin Hickman, who is also Abergavenny mayor and another member of the town council, said while he wants to encourage small businesses like Mr Copner’s, his objection was simply because of the location.

Cllr Edwards had also made objections towards the ice cream van plan to the town council – but Mr Copner complained about him for being “anti-competition” and that he “wasn’t unbiased” towards his application.

But Caldicot Castle ward member Cllr Pauline Watts said she was supportive of Mr Copner’s plan to generate more interest in the town. “We ought to be welcoming instead of them saying, ‘oh no, you can’t go there’.”