PLANS to convert the former Pontin's Holiday Camp in Middleton into a temporary prison have been scrapped.

Last week Prison Minister Lord Williams of Mostyn QC announced that the controversial plans for Middleton had been dropped in favour of a new site in Merseyside.

Lord Williams wrote to local MP Geraldine Smith to tell her that the Prison Service had decided not to proceed with the development of a Category C prison at Middleton Towers and added: "May I say how helpful I found your intervention on this issue over a long period of time. I also very much appreciated the constructive comments from your constituents when we met on site."

Geraldine said she was delighted by the announcement.

"It's great to see that local people's efforts have been rewarded in their fight against the proposed prison," she said. "I have no doubt that if such a strong campaign had not been fought then the prison would have gone ahead. Lord Williams acted in the right and proper fashion by visiting the site, meeting local people and listening to their views. This decision will be a welcome relief for many Middleton and Heysham residents who no longer have to worry about a prison on their doorstep." One local campaigner said everyone in the area had breathed a huge sigh of relief. She added: "If this prison had gone ahead we'd have said goodbye to the tourism industry around here. Now we can look to the future and making the area more attractive to visitors."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.