CHRISTMAS spirit eluded one parking attendant who booked a council vehicle being used to put up seasonal decorations in the town centre.

Now Bolton Council has launched an investigation after its own van was given a parking ticket while putting up a huge Christmas tree in the town centre.

The white van, which had been hired by the council, was parked by the 25ft fir tree in Churchgate, when a parking attendant placed a penalty charge notice on the vehicle.

One onlooker said: “The parking attendant must be a bit of a Scrooge to put a ticket on a van that is putting up a Christmas tree.

“Why are they booking their own vehicles anyway? Is the council going to pay its own fine?”

There are strict parking regulations in force in Churchgate prohibiting parking at any time, although there have been no road markings since the road was given a £900,000 facelift two years ago.

There are signs indicating parking regulations but a council spokesman confirmed that council vehicles carrying out work on highways are normally exempt from charges.

Just two hours later, a police car, parked near Bolton Crown Court, was also booked as it was parked on double yellow lines by the car park in Cheadle Square in the town centre.

Police are looking into why the vehicle was parked on double yellow lines — they are legally allowed to park in restricted areas in some cases.

Chief Inspector Sara Wallwork, of Greater Manchester Police’s Bolton division, said: “Police officers are encouraged to park their vehicles responsibly at all times, but in the case of an emergency or urgent police business, officers are permitted to park in certain restricted areas as long as they are not causing an obstruction.”

A spokesman for the council said the authority was investigating both incidents.