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James Bulger's mother meets Straw | James Bulger's mother meets Straw |
(10 minutes later) | |
Justice Secretary Jack Straw has met the mother of murdered toddler James Bulger to discuss the return to prison of one of her son's killers. | |
James was mkilled by 10-year-old's Jon Venables and Robert Thompson in 1993 after he was taken from a Merseyside shopping centre. | |
Mr Straw met Denise Fergus after it emerged Venables was recalled to prison for breaching his licence terms. | Mr Straw met Denise Fergus after it emerged Venables was recalled to prison for breaching his licence terms. |
The Ministry of Justice would not reveal what Mr Straw told Mrs Fergus. | The Ministry of Justice would not reveal what Mr Straw told Mrs Fergus. |
On 13 February 1993 Venables and Thompson abducted James in Bootle and killed him on a railway line. | |
James Bulger was abducted from a shopping centre in Bootle | |
Venables and Thompson were convicted of the toddler's murder and released on licence with a new identity in 2001. | |
An order prohibiting the publication of details which could reveal their whereabouts remains in place. | |
Venables was recalled to prison last month for an unspecified breach of his licence. | |
Mrs Fergus asked for a meeting last week after it was revealed Venables had been returned to prison. | |
The meeting with Mr Straw, at Blackburn Town Hall, lasted about an hour. | |
A spokesman for Mr Straw said the Justice Secretary tried to answer Mrs Fergus's questions "as fully as he could". | |
Mr Straw has made it clear he will not reveal the precise reasons for the decision to return Venables to prison, saying only they involved "very serious allegations". | |
Earlier this week he told the House of Commons: "It is critical that if charges do follow, it is possible to hold a fair trial - fair for the defence and fair for the prosecution." |