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At Gringley in Nottinghamshire where there is already a prison the Home Office

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At Gringley, in Nottinghamshire, where there is already a prison, the Home Office has applied for a certificate of "lawful use"- but is still likely to require planning permission to modify the buildings.Only Cookham Wood could be ready to take children by the end of next year, but having one jail on the Kent coast to take children from all over the country - and therefore miles from their families - would be of limited value.Harry Fletcher, assistant general secretary of the National Association of Probation Officers, said yesterday that plans for the units had been pushed through in response to a "myth" of a juvenile crime wave In fact, there had been a marked drop in juvenile crime. In 1980, the numbers of 10- to 16-year-olds convicted of offences totalled 128,087. However, where such high level dissent failed, the "not-in-my-backyard" sentiment seems to have succeeded.Planning permission has been refused for centres in Onley, Warwickshire, Medomsley, in Co Durham, and Kidlington, near Oxford. The proposal for five units - each to take about 40 youngsters - met with strong opposition from child welfare groups, probation officers and penal reformers. Only one, at Cookham Wood prison in Kent - home of Moors murderer Myra Hindley - has gained local authority approval. Officials fear there will not be time before the next general election to find new sites or win lengthy planning battles.Labour has never supported the idea of privately-run "little prisons" for 12-14 year olds, arguing instead that money should be provided immediately to increase the number of local authority secure places.The demise of the much-heralded tough secure units would prove a major embarrassment for the increasingly accident- prone Home Secretary.The Government first came up with the idea two years ago in a bid to combat a perceived increase in juvenile crime.

Four of the proposed secure units, a key component of the Home Secretary's criminal justice policy, are now bogged down in planning difficulties because of fierce opposition from local residents. Home Office officials doubt that Michael Howard's scheme to build five "child jails" for persistent young offenders will go ahead as planned. By all acounts this was a friendly chat and absolutely nothing of exclusive interest to News International was discussed. This is the last time Mr Murdoch spoke to Mr Blair."She added that Mr Fischer "would be failing in his duty as chief executive of a major UK company" if he did not meet members of all political parties.. We make no apology for seeking to get Labour's message across to millions of people."Current relations with the Sun and News of the World are understood to be "very good". Within minutes of the Government's defeat on the VAT vote earlier this month, the Sun was on the phone requesting an article for the following morning's edition. Mr Blair duly obliged.The rapprochement represents a shift in attitude on both sides.

Labour boycotted News International titles for a year following the move to Wapping in 1986 that led to the dismissal of 5,000 print workers.A spokeswoman for News International said last night that the dinner followed a party hosted by Mr Murdoch at his St James's Place apartment in central London, to which politicians from all parties were invited along with other media owners and editors."The next day, Mr Murdoch and his wife Anna, Mr Blair and Cherie, Gus Fischer and his wife, Gillian, had dinner. The Sun has a massive readership and on the several occasionsthey have carried articles from Tony Blair we have had tremendous feedback. News International, meanwhile, has its eye on a potential future government, as well as the review of cross-media ownership currently being carried out by Stephen Dorrell, the Secretary of State for National Heritage.Alastair Campbell, Mr Blair's press secretary, said: "News International is a very important newspaper group and it would be absurd if we did not do all we can to get a fair hearing from them. The meetings with Mr Fischer, on the other hand, discussed "issues of mutual interest", suggesting media as well as political questions.While the Sun's hostility may not have lost the Labour Party the 1992 general election (despite the paper's own claims), its stance did not help the party and Mr Blair is keen to ensure, if not outright support, then at least fair treatment next time round. Politics was high on the agenda, including the state of the Conservative Party and Labour's prospects.

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