A MUCH criticised crackdown by Bradford Council on goods displayed outside an Ilkley shop was in response to a member of the public tripping up and being hurt, says the authority.

Local people have rallied around RK Asquith and Son, on Grove Promenade, after the Council gave them two weeks to move their trays of flowers and bedding plants off the street.

The shop says its future is at stake if it is forced to stop selling plants, and it has never received a complaint from a member of the public about the display on the pavement.

But in a statement, Bradford Council says someone was injured after tripping on goods outside the shop.

A Bradford Council spokesman said: “The matter of the flowers on display outside this shop was raised when a member of the public tripped and was injured.

“We appreciate that the owner of the shop has been trading for many years and is well loved by the local community and we have arranged to meet to see where a compromise can be reached over the extent of the displays.”

The shop says the Council mentioned the incident about Christmas time - when it usually has Christmas trees and seasonal plants for sale outside - but staff had not seen any accident and nobody had complained to them.