A NEW Tesco store which is set to open in East Lothian by 2026 has moved a step closer.

The Tesco Express is planned for Futures Way, Wallyford, where more than 2,000 new homes have been built over the last few years.

It will be the largest retail unit of several planned for the site, which had originally been earmarked for a GP centre to serve the community, with a car park also included.

The proposals, previously revealed by the Courier, were discussed at a meeting of East Lothian Council's licensing board today (Thursday), where representatives of Tesco applied for a provisional licence to sell alcohol from the new store.

READ MORE: Tesco closing in on opening new store in Wallyford

They told the board that the new Express store was due to open within two years and staff would be fully trained to handle off-sales and operate CCTV systems which would be installed.

Asked about the proximity of the new store to both Wallyford Learning Campus and the new Wallyford Primary School, they said that additional staff would be brought in to cover times when pupils were likely to be passing, such as lunchtimes, or to enforce a restriction on the number allowed in the store at any given time.

Last year, East Lothian Developments Ltd, which is overseeing the delivery of the whole site, said that, while original plans had been for six retail units and a medical facility, the NHS "did not want" the land.

The commercial centre for St Clements, which will be the new home for Tesco and other smaller retail units, has more than 90 car parking spaces in the plans.

The board unanimously approved the provisional off-sales licence for the new Tesco store.