Planning officials in Bolton gave way to Volvo Car UK corporate identity (CI) demands after alleged "threats" over the potential withdrawal of a scheme to build a new showroom in the city.

Bolton Council officials agreed to allow overnight lighting for security reasons and opening hours of 7.30am until 8pm from Monday to Saturday and 10am to 6pm on Sundays after originally flagging up the need for restrictions as conditions of planning approval for the development.

The compromise was struck after Matthew Wyatt, senior planner at PWA Planning, wrote to members of the planning committee on behalf of the applicant Euro Garages.

The Bolton News newspaper reported that, at Bolton’s first virtual committee meeting held online via video conference on Thursday (June 25), Wyatt said: “These matters are absolute deal-breakers.”

He added: “Volvo will have to walk away, as has been said, if they’re not allowed to implement security measures as there’s no way their stock would be covered by insurers.”

The Bolton News reported that Cllr Nick Peel, the leader of Bolton Labour Party, accused the applicant of making “threats” to committee members.

However, their requests were granted after he said that he was “sympathetic” to the request for standard opening hours and recognised the need for lighting as a security measure.

Cllr Peel said: “I don’t appreciate threats being made to this committee or this planning authority.

“You don’t send emails to members of the committee saying you either do what we tell you to do or we will pull out our multi-million-pound investment and take it elsewhere.”

Work is already underway to develop the new Bolton showroom and an adjoining service centre at the former United Utilities site off Manchester Road, Bolton.

The development is set to deliver businesses which support 42 jobs.