THE Regent Circus development becomes more attractive daily, and so does the news associated with it.

An announcement by Morrisons that its new store will bring 180 jobs is just what we need at the moment, especially as many of those jobs will be skilled ones.

To suggest that everything in the Swindon economy is rosy would be ridiculous, not to mention insulting to the employees of companies which are currently cutting staff numbers.

The decision by Morrisons to come here, however, is every bit as encouraging a sign as the recent opening of a new Waitrose branch in the town.

When businesses such as these invest in a community, they do so because they are convinced that a customer base is waiting, and that those customers will be solvent enough for long enough to make investment worthwhile.

Decisions to set up shop in a new territory are taken only with the backing of experts, whether in-house or outside consultants, so we can allow ourselves a great deal of optimism.

On a purely practical level, the new supermarket is just the sort of anchor store the Regent Circus development and its zone of the town centre needs. It will attract many thousands of customers who will then be enticed by the other things the new site has to offer.

It’s also worth remembering that Regent Circus itself wouldn’t be happening unless the future was bright.