The arrival of a supermarket on every high street has brought benefits such as greater choice and lower prices.

But critics say that if the current aggressive growth of the “Big Four” – Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons – goes unchecked it could have a devastating impact on Britain’s towns, decimating corner shops and newsagents, damaging local economies and killing off diversity.

In 2006 a pessimistic report from the All-Party Parliamentary Small Shops Group gave warning that the continued growth of supermarket chains could contribute to the loss of 40 per cent of Britain’s 50,000 small stores by 2015. Already, it said, small shops are closing at a record rate of more than 2,000 a year.

Newsagents and independent petrol stations were those least likely to continue trading for another decade, it concluded, with convenience stores and grocers also highly vulnerable.

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But as Tesco and its peers enter new commercial territory, small-business groups claim that florists and small electrical stores are also likely to become victims of the big chains.

Andrew Simms, policy director of the New Economics Foundation and author of Tescopoly , claims that techniques used by the supermarket chains to drive out small retailers include the cross-subsidising of a handful of essential items such as milk and bread to undercut competitors. He said: “They hook you in with those and from that get much repeat custom.”

Using the huge resources at their disposal to outbid potential rivals for property is another favoured technique, he argues.

The introduction of the loyalty card – with discounts and coupons offering customers goods at below cost price – has further skewed competition with local shops.

The supermarkets, Mr Simms says, can demand from their suppliers terms that smaller retailers could not. The suppliers then drive harder deals with smaller shops. While customers like the convenience offered by supermarkets, recent campaigns against big stores provide evidence that they “don’t want to pay too high a price” for it.

Groups such as Friends of the Earth also cite the disproportionate contribution to the local community from the supermarket giants. They claim that small businesses often contribute more to the local economy by purchasing from local suppliers, employing more staff per sale and by ploughing profits into the area.