A NEW 600-place prison was announced for Liverpool yesterday – as the Government officially dumped the hotly-fought proposal for a giant "Titan" jail on the Omega business park at Warrington.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw unveiled plans for a privately-run prison at Maghull, close to Ashworth hospital, which houses Moors murderer Ian Brady.

The prison will be next door to 350-place HMP Kennet, which opened little more than a year ago. The Ministry of Justice already has planning permission for the site.

Making a statement to MPs, Mr Straw said the new Maghull prison was part of a wider plan to add 8,500 prison places over the next three years.

Furthermore, a 1,500-place "mini-Titan" is still likely in Merseyside, with four sites on a shortlist – Prescot (Liverpool), Deacon Park (Knowsley), Parkside Colliery (St Helens) and Scarisbrick (West Lancashire).

Yesterday, Mr Straw only revealed the sites for two of five 1,500-place prisons, in East London and Essex. The remaining three are still to be identified.

Crucially, the Justice Secretary did rule out any prison on the Omega site, close to Junction 8 of the M62, which will come as a huge relief to hundreds of protesters and to Warrington Borough Council.