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divdiv class=story-body readability=30 span class=story-date#13; span class=date22 November 2013/span#13; span class=time-textLast updated at /spanspan class=time06:49 ET/span#13; #13; /span#13; #13; #13; #13; #13; #13; #13; #13; #13; p class=introduction id=story_continues_1Plans to privatise three prisons have been cancelled because of an ongoing investigation into the leading bidder./p#13; pJustice Secretary Chris Grayling said the prison service would remain in charge at Hatfield, Lindholme and Moorland, all in South Yorkshire./p#13; pSerco was named as the leading bidder in July but the company has been accused of over-charging the government for electronically tagging criminals./p#13; pMr Grayling said the privatisation was cancelled for operational reasons./p#13; pThe investigations remain ongoing, Mr Grayling said in a statement./p#13; pThe impact of the delay and the uncertainty this has created mean that for operational reasons we cannot postpone the outcome of the competition process any further./p#13; pI have therefore decided that the competition for these prisons will cease and that all three prisons will be managed by HM Prison Service./p#13; span class=cross-head'Need for change'/span#13; pSerco and G4S are both subject to an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office./p#13; pAn audit suggested they took money for criminals who were either dead, in jail or never existed./p#13; pBoth firms have been excluded from new government contracts while a review of their operations is carried out./p#13; pSerco said it understood that, given the urgent need for change at the prisons, the privatisation plans as they stood were not in the institutions' best interests./p#13; pActing group chief executive Ed Casey said: From meetings with the UK government, it is clear that the operational needs of the prisons will be best served by the necessary changes being implemented without further delay./p#13; pMr Casey took over when Christopher Hyman resigned last month after almost 20 years with the company./p#13; pThe move was greeted as great news by the Prison Governors Association union./p#13; pIt should be seen as recognition of the recent hard work completed in order to modernise and streamline the public sector prison service, president Eoin McClennan said./p#13; pPrison reform campaigners welcomed what they described as a ministerial U-turn but called for the government to go further./p#13; pFrances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said the justice secretary should reverse the justice privatisation tide currently being witnessed across the country. /p#13; pShe added: Something as important as taking away someone's freedom should only be done by the state, answerable to voters./p#13; pBut the Ministry of Justice insisted it remained fully committed to a mixed market in public services./p#13; /div/divbrbrcentera href=http://www.wizardrss.comPowered By WizardRSS.com/a | a href=http://www.wizardrss.comFull Text RSS Feed/a | a href=http://www.amazon.com/RFID-Blocking-Cards-Identity-Protector/dp/B00CJHZLEWRFID/a | a href=http://www.wpzonbuilder.comAmazon Affiliate/a/center