The summer racing festival will move north while building work takes place at the Ascot course in Surrey.

But the race track on the Knavesmire in York needs to be improved to allow two-and-a-half mile races to be run.

On Thursday, the City of York's planning committee approved plans to build a temporary bend at the northern end of the course.

Officials from York racecourse say there is still a possibility of York being asked to stage a further Royal Ascot meeting in 2006.

York will get a better idea of how many meetings it will stage once Ascot has been granted full planning permission for its proposed development.