BOLTON was ahead of the game in toughening up on legal highs, officials in the town have said.

The Queen's Speech this week included a blanket ban on the production and sale of psychoactive substances, which will give local authorities more powers to tackle the shops selling them.

Councillors and police have welcomed the proposal, saying it will make communities safer and attach a stigma to taking the substances which was not present when they were referred to as "legal".

The two bodies joined forces to close legal highs shop Nirvana twice this year — once in the town centre and for a second time earlier this month in Tonge Moor Road.

Without this legislation, they were forced to rely on issuing an anti-social behaviour order and community protection notice to move the business on.

Det Insp Christopher Mossop, from Bolton North neighbourhood policing team, said: "This will speed up the process and allow us to better protect people.

"We take a strong stance on it because a lot of the stuff is not safe and people have no idea what is in it.

"We have tried to be ahead of the game.

"It will also be good for the products not to be branded as legal as that gives the impression that it is okay to take them.

"This legislation should bring a little more stigma."

The Psychoactive Substances Bill will specifically exclude alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, food and medical products, as well as drugs that are already controlled.

The government said it was focusing on the supply of legal highs, so the new laws will not include a personal possession offence.

Their use has rocketed in recent years, as have the number of deaths linked to them.

Cllr Nick Peel, executive cabinet member, said: "I do welcome this. In both locations there were problems of anti-social behaviour associated with Nirvana and the purchasing of legal highs.

"It was a complicated process for us because the sales were legal, so if the law was tightened up it would make life easier for council and police to take immediate action against any other shop which tries to open here."

Nirvana moved from Bold Street in the town centre in February after Bolton Council applied to the courts for a closure order.

After briefly operating in Tonge Moor, the council served a community protection notice on May 1 — banning them from selling legal highs.

The shop opted to close down as it would not be profitable without those sales.