Headingley Stadium cricket floodlights get go-ahead

Temporary floodlights have previously been used during cricket matches at Headingley

Cricket matches at Headingley Stadium will be floodlit from 2015 after plans to install permanent lights were given the go-ahead.

Leeds City Council granted Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC) planning permission at a meeting earlier.

Four 184ft-high (56m) pylons will be built at the stadium at a cost of £1.8m and used up to 20 times a season.

YCCC chief executive Mark Arthur said it was a "major step forward for the club".

"We want to create a stadium that is amongst the finest in the world and enable Yorkshire to continue to stage major international fixtures over the long term," he said.

"It will also enable us to promote day/night fixtures, which will become an integral part of our limited overs schedule in the various domestic competitions."

The club has been given a £700,000 grant towards the cost of the lighting by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Mr Arthur said "work will continue" to secure the remaining £1.1m.