Market traders in Bicester are upset after a stallholder was asked to move from outside Marks & Spencer's new store.

Raz Harji, whose stall has been on the same pitch in Sheep Street for nearly two years, said he was asked to move on Friday after being told he was blocking the store's entrance.

But Mr Harji, who sells soft toys and china, refused to move and said Cherwell District Council had agreed he could stay as long as he left a gap in front of the store, which opened last week.

Mr Harji separated his stock into two sections, leaving a two-metre wide gap directly in front of the store. He had been trading at the site, formerly an Iceland food store, since the market moved from the Market Square over 18 months ago.

He said: "The deal was to leave a big gangway in the middle. The manager came out when I was setting up. He said 'we have agreed with the council you are not to set up today'. He was calling my bluff because I know what we agreed. I am upset."

Richard Gould, chairman of Bicester Market Traders' Association, said: "He still has a licence to be in that spot. There was no issue when Iceland was there. It's not even a big stall."

Ginnie Oram, a spokesman for Marks & Spencer, said store managers had spoken to the district council in advance because they were worried about health and safety issues. She said: "On the day, they approached the assistant market manager to ask him to move slightly. It certainly wasn't to ask him to stop trading. There was no issue with him trading, just his position."

Pat Simpson, a spokesman for the council, said: "The trader is trading within the terms of his licence. He's where he has always been and he is within his rights."