Plan to attract Third World traders met with threats

And he said it highlighted a real contempt towards foreigners from many people in the town.

John Beer said he had been abused over the telephone and to his face after news of his trade plan was reported in the Observer.

He received six phone calls, which he believes were orchestrated, from men.

"They were effing and blinding at me," he said. "They made all sorts of terrible threats against me."

He said he had also been cursed when he had gone out socially.

"There is a real anti-black, anti-Asian, anti-Indian/Pakistani, anti-African attitude here," he said. "It's real xenophobia which I never knew existed.

"I came here from London and you get so used to there being such a mix of races that nobody would dare say those sorts of things.

"They would be looked at as if they were mad. People around here are extraordinarily prepared to voice an anti-minority point of view."

Mr Beer's plan is to use the former Woolworths store in the London Road precinct as a Fairtrade-style outlet for trainee retailers from developing countries.

He wants to use United Nations funding to boost world trade '“ with backing from the European Union and the British government '“ to enable governments from countries such as those in Africa to send individuals to Bognor to sell their countries' goods.

He envisages 20 to 30 separate trading areas being set up in the former store, which has been empty for almost five months, representing various nations.

Progress on his ambitions has been slow so far. But he has vowed to continue until he exhausts all methods of fulfilling his proposals.

Mr Beer, of Park Road, is convinced encouraging global trade is the only way to avoid future conflict between rich and poor nations.

"The idea of helping Third World countries to get richer is to stop people starving to death. Climate change is going to make a big difference to countries such as those in Africa.

"It is going to be so bad people are going to be coming to Organisation of Economic and Co-operation Development countries like Britain as their only way out.

"We have to give them a way of earning a living and a way of competing in the global economy, otherwise, we are done for.

"But the people who are criticising me can't see it.

"If we think our situation is dire at the moment, think what it must be like for someone in Africa on two dollars a day.

"Just aid is not going to be enough to help them. We have to do business with them as well."

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