CLUB RAC could be the first licensed premises in Farnworth to stay open until the early hours if a new licence application is approved.

Councillors will decide today whether to allow the nightclub to stay open until 4am.

Bosses at Club RAC, in Market Street in Farnworth, want a new licence that could allow the nightspot to stay open later than its normal closing time.

The disco, which attracts about 240 people a night, currently has a 'standard' licence that allows revellers to keep partying until 2am.

But despite a possible two-hour licence extension, Bolton Council has not received any objections from residents or police.

If approved, Club RAC would become one of the latest closing discos in Bolton joining other bars with 4am licences, like J2 in Nelson's Square and Icon on Bridge Street.

But Farnworth councillor Noel Spencer, who was unaware of the application, expressed caution to the plans.

He said: "It is a cause for concern for a nightclub to be open so late. We do have a problem with people drinking in Farnworth. A 4am licence is not something I would welcome." Bolton Council licensing officer Andrew Fisher dismissed any suggestions that later licensing hours could disturb residents.

He said: "If there were any noise issues associated with Club RAC, they would have become apparent during their current 2am licence. I don't think noise is a problem.

"It would seem that the club wants to remain competitive with other venues in the town centre."

The proposals have been submitted by manager Clare Topcu who took over the club last July.

She has run a number of pubs in Bolton including the Dunscar Arms.

Baden Investments, previous owners of Club RAC, was banned at the High Court in London, last October, from playing music after it breached licensing laws.

The company faced a £10,000 fine after the Farnworth club was caught without a valid Phonographic Performance licence.

It meant it was avoiding royalty payments on behalf of record companies for sound recordings used in public.

But Ms Topcu was not employed at the club during the licensing breaches. Club RAC was formerly Scarlett's nightspot and before that was the Rose and Crown pub.