Morrisons facing boycott calls in row over veteran, 89, selling poppies outside in cold

The Royal British Legion said it had chosen to stand outside the supermarket

Morrisons is facing calls for a boycott after an 89-year-old war veteran said he had been made to sell poppies outside in the cold.

A customer, Veronica Roach, said she was shopping in the Taunton branch on Saturday when she became concerned about the elderly man by the entrance and found his hands were “freezing”.

When she challenged the manager, Ms Roach claimed he told her there was no room for the Royal British Legion collector inside because of a promotional stand and he should “wear a warmer coat”.

Ms Roach’s post about the incident on Facebook went viral and caused a storm of criticism on social media, with angry Twitter users posting the #boycottmorrisons hashtag.

A spokesperson for the supermarket said the matter had been a “misunderstanding” and the British Legion had chosen to stand outside to sell to passers-by.

“The British Legion in the morning confirmed they wanted to collect outside. However at lunchtime their volunteer changed to an 89-year-old gentleman,” he added.

“We can confirm that our manager did not know this and therefore his comment ‘wrap up warm’ is then exceptionally inappropriate and he is very saddened by this.

“We at Morrisons are very sorry at how this misunderstanding has looked, we will of course donate to the British Legion, and will be making a special gift to both Veronica and our 89-year-old veteran.”

Funds raised from the sale of poppies help the members of the armed forces with financial difficulties (Reute)

The supermarket has now moved stands in the foyer to make room for Poppy Appeal volunteers.

Ms Roach, a former member of the Women’s Royal Air Force, said she had been phoned by Morrisons about the incident and it had been “resolved”.

A spokesperson for the Royal British Legion confirmed that as Saturday was the first day of collecting, volunteers were offered the choice of being inside or outside Morrisons and chose the latter “as there was a higher footfall”.

"We are grateful to Morrison's, as we are to all commercial outlets, who permit Poppy Appeal collections on their sites throughout the UK and in doing so strengthen our fundraising efforts so the Legion can continue to offer vital support and care to the Armed Forces community,” he added.