Cafe bar and improved wedding facilities WILL be built in Bolton Town Hall

But the historic front of the Grade II listed building will remain untouched — after Bolton Council scrapped controversial plans for a restaurant and outdoor terrace.

During a fiery meeting of the council’s planning committee, proposals to cut into the side of the building to create disabled access were approved.

Councillors called for the decision to be deferred as they said not enough detail had been provided and the people of Bolton had only been given 10 days to comment on the latest plans.

Planning officer Jon Berry told the meeting that the council had received no objections to the proposal — since the original scheme was scrapped.

The plans will now go before the Secretary of State for final approval — because of the building's listed status.

Conservative committee member Cllr Mudasir Dean said the matter should have been deferred.

He said: “Members of this committee who voted in favour of this proposal have not considered how important this building is in the eyes of the residents of Bolton.

“These proposals should have been deferred at this stage to look at other options — it is shameful.”

Bromley Cross councillor Norman Critchley said the committee would look like idiots for approving the decision.

However, the decision was voted through by the Labour majority, with the condition that the plans come back before the committee — with more detail — provided the scheme is approved by the government.

UKIP's Cllr Sean Hornby said the decision should have been deferred.

He said: “We have to show transparency to the public out there — this is one of the most contentious applications this council has had to deal with in many years.

“People have only had 10 days notice to comment — they are rushing it through.”

Original plans to create a restaurant and cafe either side of the town hall steps, which included introducing outdoor seating areas created by cutting into the front facade of the Grade II listed building, were dropped after outcry from campaigners.

The council's new vision will focus on creating a cafe-bar inside the town hall and upgrading the wedding and function facilities.

Planning permission was approved for the erection of an accessible ramp to allow improved access for disabled people to the planned new venues.

The planning document states that the ramp will most likely be made of a “stone and glass structure” and will be placed close to the current entrance to the Albert Halls.

Councillors were in favour of creating the ramp, to remove the current “two-tier” system making access to the town hall more difficult for disabled people.

Another application was approved to gain consent for the work to the listed building.

Labour's Cllr Nick Peel defended the decision to approve the plans and said the planning committee would still have the final say.

He said: “We want to keep members of the committee firmly in the driving seat, and to allow members to keep a very close watching brief of this application.”

Full details about the introduction of a new lift, repairs to a roof and other improvements will be brought before the committee at a later date.

After the meeting, Conservative councillor John Walsh, a member of the committee, said: “It could have been handled a lot better. When you have a planning report which does not include full details, that’s pretty poor.

“It is the most important decision about the town hall since rebuilding it in 1982, and before you punch a hole in it to create a lift you should have the full details.”