MARKS & SPENCER have insisted they remain interested in opening a foodhall at Halbeath.

The retail giant announced recently that more stores were set to close after an overhaul of its estate with 25 Simply Food outlets to go across the UK.

This had raised fears that a foodhall planned at the Halbeath Retail Park could be affected, however, a spokesperson for the retailers said their position had not changed and they were still interested in the site but added they had no further updates at the moment.

Planning permission for an extension of Halbeath Retail Park – which would feature nine units including M&S and Lidl – was granted in February 2017 but building work is yet to start.