BOLTON is preparing to launch an exciting double bid ... to become Millennium City.

The Queen has announced that two new cities will be created in the next three years.

One will be to mark the Millennium - the other will be in 2002 to commemorate the Queen's Golden Jubilee.

Bolton Council is now preparing to put in an application for the Millennium and if that is unsuccessful, the Golden Jubilee.

A report will go to the council's policy sub committee on Friday giving details of the application.

It says that the Home Office has now issued details of the application process.

Prestige

No date has been set for a decision to be announced, but it is expected that the applications would have to be in by the late summer or early autumn.

Cllr Bob Howarth, Bolton Council leader, said: "We will certainly give it a try.

"We are a large town with a proud history and it would be nice to have the prestige of being a city.

"It may also help to attract investment - particularly from abroad - to Bolton."

Bolton last applied to be a city in 1992 but was pipped at the post by Sunderland.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.