THE PROPOSED "super" Chamber of Commerce for north Manchester businesses has been given the go-ahead.

Bolton and Bury Chamber voted Yes to a merger with their counterparts in Rochdale and Oldham at an extraordinary general meeting.

The new North Manchester Chamber of Commerce will be set up on July 1and will also involve a close alliance with Business Link North Manchester.

It will create two separate, but closely connected companies, which will share the same main board of directors.

Andrew Dickson, president of Bolton and Bury Chamber, said: "This is great news for chamber members. We will grow from a 1,300 strong organisation to one with 2,800 members, employing over 100,000 people.

"This will dramatically increase our influence in the region and more than double the networking opportunities available to members.

"While other larger regional chambers have been winning public funds for the benefit of the business community, the smaller chambers have been losing out on pots of lucrative funding.

"Now, as a large concern with a regional remit and our strong alliance with Business Link, we will have much more power and influence in championing the North Manchester economy."

He added: "Although the new chamber will be much bigger, it will keep its strong local perspective. Each chamber will continue to have a strong local presence, with a new office established in Bury and local offices retained in Bolton, Oldham and Rochdale. There will be local advisory boards in each of the towns and local directors on the main company board.

"Members really will enjoy the best of both worlds."