BUILD it, and they will come, the saying goes.

Bicester Village has certainly taken this to heart, making a huge success of the major shopping destination.

The Westgate Oxford Alliance would do well to heed the same advice.

Bicester’s plans to expand are very much welcome, creating great new opportunities for customers and workers alike.

It will be a huge boost for Oxfordshire’s economy, and yes, potentially, it will take trade from Oxford.

But instead of criticising others for doing well, perhaps the alliance should give people a reason to want to shop in Oxford.

Let’s be brutally honest, the city centre doesn’t have much to offer serious shoppers.

The reasons behind that are well documented.

There’s no flagship stores and little in the way of high-end, designer fare.

Parking charges are too high, if you can find a space at all.

And to make matters worse, there are a wealth of better options on our doorstep.

Aside from the aforementioned Bicester Village, there’s the capital and all it has to offer just an hour by train.

And even smaller towns like Witney have a lot to offer.

The city as a whole needs to back independent gems like the Covered Market, and sort out the bickering that has resulted in no Christmas market this year.

The Westgate alliance needs to spend less time trying to scupper other success stories, and more on putting its own house in order.

Making the long awaited, and much- delayed, £330m Westgate redevelopment a reality would be a good start.