A BID to earmark spots for a number of approved street traders in Bolton town centre has been unveiled by the council.

Six pitches will be created for mobile stalls where quality, service and cleanliness will be closely monitored by Bolton's team of town centre ambassadors. Most of the pitches will be for food stalls.

Council chiefs say the move, which came at the suggestion of the Bolton Town Centre Company, does not mark a softening in their stance towards nuisance street traders.

Andrew Fisher, group manager for the council's licensing section, said: "For some time the council has recognised that other towns and cities permit quite successfully a limited amount of street trading within town centre areas.

"The view is that it enhances the street scene and makes the town centre more vibrant and attractive."

All applications for permanent pitches will be considered by the council's licensing committee and it is expected they will be in place by summer.

At the moment such stalls are prohibited.

But there is little the council can do about street traders who do not have a fixed stall, providing they have a peddler's licence which can be easily obtained from the police.

Canvassers selling accident insurance or those encouraging shoppers to switch gas or electricity suppliers are also exempted from anti-street trading laws because they are selling services not goods.

"It's a wholly unsatisfactory situation," Mr Fisher admitted. "Currently the prohibition on street trading is riddled with inconsistencies."

He said the council was interested in hearing the public's views on street traders.

"These can only help our efforts to make sure that we end up with lonly egitimate street traders who add something to the town," he said.