PREDICTABLY, those campaigning against a planned probation centre in Mill Street, Oxford, have roped in the kids.

Well, they would, wouldn’t they?

A tatty, homemade banner draped over the railings by the railway bridge on Botley Road makes it clear the kids are against the controversial centre.

But we wonder how much the children of angry parents actually know about the plans, or what a probation centre is actually used for.

Did they help make the banner?

In fact, we wonder whether these children can spell probation centre at all.

President Barrack Obama’s influence is being felt in the strangest of places. At Oxford’s home game against Histon at the start of April, a few fans in the Oxford Mail Stand attempted – but failed – to get a chant of “Yes we can! Yes we can!” going. It was a reference both to Obama’s election-winning catchphrase and Oxford’s push for the play-offs.

We all know that Obama could – but can Oxford United?

AN interesting blog from Antonia Bance, right, the Labour city councillor for Rose Hill & Iffley, about teenage pregnancies caught our attention recently.

In it she takes offence at Tom Harris, a Labour MP for Glasgow South, for adding to the “unthinking, untrue and unfair scaremongering about teenage mums” in which he calls the 29,000-odd young women having babies before they reach 20 a “national catastrophe”.

According to Antonia, teenage pregnancy is partly about poverty, because these poor young girls are far more likely to get pregnant if they are not doing well in school.

Call us old fashioned, but teenage pregnancy is surely about choice – and, more importantly, acting responsibly.

IT is rare here at Insider Towers that we find ourselves in agreement with Keith Mitchell, the leader of Oxfordshire County Council.

But this week, the ‘Kaiser’ and us are on the same wavelength.

A few weeks ago we remarked on the pleasing sight of repairs being made to Oxford’s crumbling towpaths, a sentiment shared by Mr Mitchell.

In fact, they look a delight.

He said: “I must congratulate our highways and countryside teams for the terrific job they have made of repairing sections of towpath in Oxford.

“Anyone who has seen the work they have undertaken at Medley, Fiddlers Island, Abbey Road, between Folly Bridge and Donnington, and near Grandpont Nature Reserve cannot fail to have been impressed.

“Oxford’s towpaths are an important part of its attraction to visitors and residents alike, and I believe we have delivered value for money work to improve quality of life. Well done to all concerned.”

Great! We look forward to seeing him in his shorts, cycling along beside the Thames.