Councillors have voted to defer the decision on Aldi and KFC setting up on Chatham's Horsted Retail Park.

The proposal was discussed at a Medway Council planning meeting last night where the plans, which include some traffic-calming measures, were explained.

Committee members decided to put off the firms' application due to uncertainty over the park's Toys R Us store.

The American-owned company has gone into administration with speculation all its UK outlets will close in the next six weeks.

Cllr Glyn Griffiths said: “I support [KFC and Aldi application] in principle. But I am in real difficulty. How can we say what to put in the unit when we don't know what Toys R Us will be used for?

"One would like to think it will be more successfully and so a great usage of the car park.

“I’m not sure we can safeguard impact of local area into Davis Estate when we have got such a huge question mark.

"I don’t see how we can approve this when such a question mark over that."

Cllr Martin Potter agreed with the statement saying they were trying to judge an application about the unknown.

There was also a suggestion the new leaseholders of the Toys R Us building might want to divide the store in two.

Committee chairman Cllr Diane Chambers said: “I can appreciate the situation with Toys R Us is not of the making of the applicant.

“I struggle with all of issues in relation to the highway. You can’t change the behaviour of the drivers coming off the motorway.

“It will make it difficult for people on the Davis Estate. It’s the only way they can get out.

“It’s difficult to make a judgement bearing in mind a building could be divided into units in which we don’t know what it will be. I can’t support the application.”

Councillors voted against the application nine to five and a second vote on the deferral was supported by 12 of the committee members.