Dartford council leader Jeremy Kite says other supermarkets, retailers and housing developers are ready to step in after Tesco scrapped plans to build in Lowfield Street.

The future for Dartford town centre is set to come under close scrutiny next week when Tesco bosses meet MP Gareth Johnson to discuss the aborted development.

Yesterday, chief executive David Lewis said it was with a "heavy heart" that the retail giant was scrapping the proposals.

The announcement comes after a troubled two years for Tesco, which has seen its profits slump and a unfolding accounting scandal.

Cllr Kite revealed the council has received approaches from other parties, registering their interest in developing Dartford if the Tesco deal collapsed.

He said they included other supermarket, retailers and housing developers.

Cllr Kite said: "The company has been telling us since last autumn, when we first got involved and the national problems became visible, that they were still regarding Dartford as a viable development.

"I made clear at the time that I did not necessarily believe them.

"I'm more convinced with today's news that something must be done to prevent this situation happening again.

"I appreciate that there is politics at play here and that people will want to blame us and suggest that there are mistakes that I have made but I want to focus only on what happens to Dartford now. Our job is to make sure Dartford prospers out of this."

MP Gareth Johnson said the long-running saga brings to an end a sorry tale for Dartford.

He said: "It’s been a very frustrating episode for Dartford, especially when you see how little Tesco has actually done over the years (since announcing its plans).

“It brings to an end a sorry tale for the town. But at least the one positive is that there is finally some closure and we can look to the future of Lowfield Street and want we want for that area. Dartford will not be sorry to see the back of Tesco.”

And today, traders in Lowfield Street vented their fury by describing how Tesco had "torn the heart" out of the community in Dartford.

Cat Bailey, from Dartford Ink, said: "They have destroyed the community.

"It was expected, we have seen nothing here in the five years I've been here. It has been a nuisance and now we have the uncertainty of a new developer coming in and drawing up their own plans.

"Tesco has torn the heart out of the community in Dartford."

Demolition work in Lowfield Street, Dartford, had finally begun last year after much wrangling over the site.

In 2003, plans were thrown out by the Secretary of State while a revised scheme was considered unviable five years later.

A breakthrough looked possible in 2012 when Dartford council approved a renewed application but the supermarket giant changed its mind over what it wanted to build and submitted a revised scheme in July 2013.

The fourth application was approved and demolition finally got under way last year.

But many had their doubts that a store would ever appear.

The long-running saga has seen residents, businesses and members of the Glentworth Club all stand up to Tesco, accusing them of being unreasonable.