THE owners of a petrol station in Little Lever have been refused permission to open 24 hours a day.

Little Lever Filling Station in Church Street asked to become a 24-hour operation, as it currently has to close at 10pm.

The planning committee at Bolton Council heard how the managers had been encouraged by the police to extend its hours as a way of reducing the level of anti-social behaviour around the area.

The business had also suffered from multiple burglaries, it was told, resulting in the loss of thousands of pounds.

Officers in the planning department recommended councillors approve the application, but Little Lever councillor Anthony Connell called for it to be rejected.

The owners can appeal to the government.