Take your pick between nuclear power,rubbish collection and absconding terrorist for today's top stories.

The Guardian leads with

Prime sites for nuclear power stations identified

The government is considering building nuclear power stations on the sites of old coal and gas-fired stations in Oxfordshire and the south-east, according to documents released yesterday as part of a consultation forced on it by the courts.
A confidential report, commissioned by the DTI last year from leading energy analysts Jackson Consulting, has recommended a new generation of plants at existing or redundant civil and military nuclear power stations. But it says that many of these will be unavailable for years or will be unsuitable because they have limited connections to the national grid.

Following yesterdays statement in the Commons which the Independent reports

A blueprint for a new generation of power stations was revealed yesterday as Tony Blair committed Britain to a nuclear component in energy supply.
The Government announced a five-month consultation exercise on its plans for new nuclear plants by the private sector but a private consultants' report for the Department of Trade and Industry raised suspicions that the consultation is a sham.
Critics called the consultation a "farce" and nuclear power would be a "dangerous, dirty white elephant". The report says new nuclear plants should be built predominantly in the South-east where the main demand for energy exists.

For the Times and the Telegraph we return to rubbish collection

Chip-and-bin’ tax aims to force more recycling is the lead in the Times

Householders are facing an extra tax on their rubbish under plans announced today to increase recycling and reduce landfill waste.
In a policy document entitled Waste Strategy for England 2007, David Miliband, the Environment Secretary, will disclose proposals to allow local councils to implement a “pay-as-you-throw” scheme using wheelie bins fitted with electronic sensors. He will also propose measures to cut down on junk mail and supermarket plastic bags, The Times has learnt.
The “chip and bin” and other measures are part of a new plan to reduce household and commercial waste over the next 20 years. They follow statistics showing that Britain has the worst recycling rates in the EU after Greece and Portugal: Britain recycles 18 per cent of its rubbish, compared with 58 per cent in Germany.

The Telegraph warns of

Microchips in dustbins spy on three million





Ahead of today's publication of the Government's national waste strategy, a survey revealed that 68 town halls have spent millions of pounds buying bins with microchips.
The figure is double previous estimates and will fuel fears that Labour has been moving secretly towards a European-style "bin tax".
The microchips, together with reading equipment which could be installed in refuse lorries, would allow councils to weigh each household's rubbish. The system could eventually be used to charge households for the amount of non-recyclable waste they produce, which currently has to be buried in landfill sites.





GET THEM
'Extreme danger' terror suspects on loose says the Mirror





THREE "extremely dangerous" terror suspects were on the run last night after breaching control orders.
The threat to security is so grave that police took the unprecedented step of naming and picturing the men.
Algerian-born Tube driver Lamine Adam, 26, and his brother Ibrahim, 20, disappeared on Monday night after failing to report to a private monitoring firm.
Their brother Anthony Garcia, 24, was jailed for life last month for the Bluewater fertiliser bomb plot.
He was a henchman of plot leader Omar Khyam.
London-born Cerie Bullivant, 24, vanished on Tuesday morning after failing to report to a London police station.
Warning the public not to approach the men, counter-terrorism chief Peter Clarke said: "We know they are associates and may well be together. Anyone who sees them should call 999 immediately."





The Mail has the same lead





New security shambles as three terror suspects go on the run





Three terror suspects, including two brothers of an Islamic fanatic jailed for plotting mass murder, are on the run tonight.
They had all been under control orders requiring them to report to the authorities every day.
Two of the men are Lamine Adam, 26, and Ibrahim Adam, 20, whose brother Anthony Garcia, 24, was jailed for life last month for his part in the fertiliser bomb plot. The third man is their associate Cerie Bullivant, 24.





Fury as 'terror' bruvs do runner says the Sun





Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: “People are placed on control orders on the basis they are terror suspects who pose a serious risk to the public.
“It is shocking that these three have absconded.”Lib Dem home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg added: “This is yet another hammer blow for the increasingly discredited system of control orders.”





It leads though with the result from Athens





MERSEY CRIED





LIVERPOOL fans were inconsolable last night after their Euro dream ended in tears — with a shattering Champions League final defeat.
Italian striker Filippo Inzaghi scored twice to break the hearts of the 40,000-strong Kop Army as AC Milan stole a 2-1 victory to gain revenge over the Mersey giants for the 2005 final.
Liverpool recovered from 3-0 down on that unforgettable night in Istanbul. But this time there was no fairytale comeback — and millions watching on TV shared their disappointment.
In spite of their defeat, Scousers still out-sang their Italian rivals as they belted out Anfield anthems including You’ll Never Walk Alone and Ring of Fire.





A KICK INZ THE TEETH is how the Mirror describes it





Italian giants AC Milan spoiled the party with two goals from Filippo Inzaghi that avenged their penalty heartbreak in the epic 2005 contest in Turkey when Liverpool lifted the trophy.
To add to the misery, they were robbed - with the first goal deflecting off Inzaghi's arm to fly past stranded goalie Pepe Reina.





The latest opinion poll in the Guardian shows





Labour closes poll gap to two points with voters in no rush to see Blair go





The Conservative lead over Labour has narrowed sharply to just two points, according to a Guardian/ICM poll published today. It also shows that voters are in no hurry to see a new prime minister despite Tory taunts that Tony Blair is "indulging his vanity" by remaining in office until the end of June.
The first poll to be carried out after it was confirmed that Gordon Brown will not face a challenge for the Labour leadership finds little enthusiasm for an immediate handover: 55% of people want Mr Blair to stay until June 27, the day he has announced that he will leave office. Only 38% want him to go now. Labour supporters are even more eager to wait, with 71% wanting the prime minister to stay on into June and only 28% saying a change now would be better.





But the government was under pressure in the Commons yesterday as the same paper reports





Hewitt battles for survival in Commons after day of criticism





The health secretary, Patricia Hewitt, battled for her political reputation, if not her survival, yesterday in a packed Commons debate on a Tory motion of no confidence. It came at the end of a day which featured severe criticism from a high court judge over the junior doctors debacle, and angry scenes at the annual conference of NHS midwives .
Ministers were out in force to support their colleague as she defended her record in the face of taunts from Andrew Lansley, the Conservative health spokesman, who said she had "no credibility left" and had "lost the confidence of the NHS".





But not only the Government as the Mail reports





Millionaire Tory donors join grammar schools revolt against Cameron





The revolt over David Cameron's decision to ditch Tory support for grammar schools could damage the party's finances.
Furious millionaire donors will have a showdown with education spokesman David Willetts in protest at the controversial policy decision.
He will be hauled before them next month to explain why the Tories have turned against academic selection.
The Conservatives' biggest donor, Stuart Wheeler, told the Daily Mail he wanted to be at the meeting to tell Mr Willetts that the policy was wrong.





And more political intrigue





Brown 'may name Straw as Deputy PM' says the Telegraph





Gordon Brown could bypass the winner of Labour's deputy leadership contest and parachute Jack Straw, his campaign manager, into the job of Deputy Prime Minister, senior party sources said last night.


Such a move would disappoint front-runners for the job - including Alan Johnson, the Education Secretary and Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland Secretary - who are keen to land the title of Deputy Prime Minister and the prestige that goes with it. Mr Brown, who is under no obligation to make the deputy leader his Deputy Prime Minister, has refused to make any guarantee because he does not want to tie his hands before knowing who the winner will be.





The Independent leads with a different story





Google is watching you





Google, the world's biggest search engine, is setting out to create the most comprehensive database of personal information ever assembled, one with the ability to tell people how to run their lives.
In a mission statement that raises the spectre of an internet Big Brother to rival Orwellian visions of the state, Google has revealed details of how it intends to organise and control the world's information.
The company's chief executive, Eric Schmidt, said during a visit to Britain this week: "The goal is to enable Google users to be able to ask the question such as 'What shall I do tomorrow?' and 'What job shall I take?'."
Speaking at a conference organised by Google, he said : "We are very early in the total information we have within Google. The algorithms [software] will get better and we will get better at personalisation."





As with many papers it reports on





Islanders evicted for US base finally win right to return home





Thousands of British citizens who were evicted from their paradise island home to make way for a giant US air base have won the right to return.
In a landmark legal judgment, the Court of Appeal ruled that the Chagos islanders could rebuild a life that they lost in the late 1960s.
Yesterday the islanders packed the court to witness their victory, and then called on the Government to pay for about 5,000 of them to return and rebuild the life that they lost 40 years ago.
The court overturned an order made by the Government in 2004 banning islanders from returning. Olivier Bancoult, the leader of the Chagossian community in exile, said: "I feel very happy not just for myself but all the people who have been separated from their motherland.





Whilst the Telegraph says





The Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett, who took the case to the Court of Appeal after two High Court judges had found for the Chagossians, will have to show "good cause" if she wants the appeal judges to order a stay on the judgment.
The Government was also refused permission to take the case to the House of Lords. It is expected to petition the law lords directly, seeking a final challenge at the highest court in the land.





The same paper finds eveidence of more government control





Road pricing trials could start next year





Pay-as-you-drive equipment could be installed in hundreds of cars under a Government plan to test the technology behind the idea.
No money will be charged while the technology is tested.
The Government hopes to start full road pricing pilots in 2011, when motorists will be expected to pay for driving in some parts of the country.
During the first dummy tests the Department for Transport [DfT] is expecting technological teething troubles to let 15 per cent of motorists escape the "charges" and for one car in 10 to be incorrectly "billed".





The Express continues the theme on its front page





GAS AND ELECTRIC SPIES IN YOUR HOME




EVERY home in Britain is to be fitted with a high-tech meter to track its energy usage, the Government an­nounced yesterday.
So-called “smart” meters will show precisely how much gas and electricity is consumed by households – down to the nearest penny. They then send the information to the power supplier, ending the need for visits from meter readers. Critics fear that the devices will give energy firms the ability to snoop on customers.



The Independent reports on the squatter who





wins £2m London plot after 18-year stay





Harry Hallowes, who has lived in a shack on the corner of the heath in north London for more than 18 years, has been given deeds to the thicket he calls home. Mr Hallowes, who says he "never had any trade or profession", had been squatting in the grounds of Athlone House nursing home, but when the land was bought by developers he feared he would be evicted.
But now an agreement made under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act has ensured that he will be there for life. Mr Hallowes' lawyer, Morris Evans, said: "Mr Hallowes is now officially the owner of the plot. Until recently the law said that if you occupied land for 12 years or more without being thrown out, then you were entitled to own it."
The developer, Dwyer Asset Management, which bought the Victorian nursing home and its grounds from the NHS to create 22 new apartments, had already decided to give back a hectare of land to the heath as a buffer.





COPS 'FAILED THE BASICS' says the Mirror





POLICE probing the kidnap of Madeleine McCann made basic errors, a child protection expert said yesterday.
Accusing them of failing to complete the fundamental "building blocks", former detective Mark Williams-Thomas said: "It was the worst preserved crime scene I've ever seen."
Mr Williams-Thomas hit out as it emerged that there is NO evidence to link sole suspect Robert Murat with the disappearance three weeks ago of Madeleine, four.



Finally the Guardian reports on





A day at the opera with Hitler: the secret agent who captured rare moments for MI5





They shared a love of Richard Wagner and were regulars at the annual Bayreuth festival held to celebrate the German composer's works. But although Adolf Hitler took Charles Turner for just another camera-toting opera lover, he was in fact a British secret agent.
Yesterday, the photographs that Turner took of the Führer on a summer's day in 1939 were made public for the first time. Dressed in a cream overcoat and a fedora and carrying white gloves, Hitler is pictured leaving a performance. In another image, he is wearing a white tie and carries a ticket while flanked by his SS bodyguard. A third black-and-white snap shows him being presented with a bouquet by two girls.