An MSP yesterday called for a trial matching a "home town" against a "clone town" to study how much damage is done when the supermarkets and major high street chains come to dominate a community.

Chris Harvie, the SNP member who landed in hot water for branding Lockerbie a dump, told the Scottish Parliament: "Melrose is what the Federation of Small Businesses in Scotland calls a home town' - good butchers, bakers, fish shop, greengrocery, wine merchants, ironmongers and - no coincidence - excellent small hotels and restaurants.

"Some 80% of the shops on its high street are independent, with good public transport and plenty of car parking. Of how many Scots towns can this be said?"

He contrasted this with clone towns', saying: "The high street is under challenge from edge-of-town' shopping. Where it wins, the high street gets taken over by mobile phone offices, charity shops, estate agents, fast-food outlets and cheap dealers. Rest and recreation' moves in, meaning drink and its consequences, and commerce moves out."

The arrival of big supermarkets was justified in terms of jobs, he said, but these were often low skilled, low wage and part time. "What happens to local service-sector jobs - in wholesale, law, cleaning, transport, commercial travellers and accommodation for them? To Scottish-owned clothing chains like Mackays?

"Can't we have a trial in which home town' is matched against clone town'? The internal patterns of commerce and society within both can be measured so we can get a picture of the economic dynamics which hold communities together, or pull them apart. There isn't anything inevitable about what's happening."