UNDER-FIRE Church of England leaders last night defended not telling police a choirmaster had sexually assaulted a boy 17 years ago.

Peter Halliday, now 61, was yesterday jailed for 30 months for abusing three boys, including the youngster who had complained, between 1985 and 1990.

He had admitted ten counts of indecent assault. However, the choirmaster could have been caught earlier when the boy told a church camp leader about the abuse in 1990.

Halliday admitted the sex attack but was only asked by the church to resign his position, not work with young boys again, and get counselling.

However, Church of England officials last night insisted they were “satisfied what was done at the time was the way things happened in those days”.

Halliday was choirmaster at St Peter’s Church in Farnborough, Hampshire, at the time of the offences.

After being confronted by the vicar, Alan Boddington, and the boy’s father, nothing was done after the clergyman consulted senior colleagues.

Unknown to the church, Halliday, who was described by his victims as a bully and revolting, had attacked two other youngsters who had not complained.

He was even able to carry on serving as a governor of a secondary school in Hampshire until 2000.

One of the victims finally went to police last October and Halliday, from Farnborough, confessed.

Jailing him at Winchester Crown Court, Judge Ian Pearson said the decision not to call in police had been “unfortunate”, but procedures had been different at the time.

A Church of England statement from Mark Rudall, the Guildford Diocesan spokesman, added: “We are completely satisfied that what was done at the time was the way things happened in those days.

“Church officers at every level acted in good faith in accordance with what they perceived to be in the best interests of child and family at that time - before the law and government guidelines were as they are today.”

It also emerged that the boy’s parents told the church at the time they did not want the police to be informed.

David Pearson, chief executive of the Churches’ Child Protection Advisory Service, said: “It has been stated that the law was different back then. This is a red herring. Those in charge at the time failed to act appropriately and take professional advice when it was readily available.

“The church had a clear responsibility to take effective action to ensure a known risk was prevented from having any further contact with children.

“This situation was seriously mishandled by the church and the victims will best be helped now by those responsible making a full acknowledgement of these failings.”

Judge Pearson said Halliday had systematically sexually abused the boys and said the offences were so serious only a custodial sentence was appropriate. He also banned Halliday from working with children for life and put him on the sex offenders’ register. He also ordered him to pay 2,000 each in compensation to his victims.

The court was told that one of the boys told a Christian leader at a camp that Halliday had been abusing him, sparking Mr Boddington’s involvement. But Susan Evans, defending, said the vicar was only aware of one allegation at the time.

Ruth Bowskill, prosecuting, told the court Halliday indecently assaulted the boys during swimming lessons, at camps and at his house. She said some of the victims said they had been indecently assaulted up to 30 times.

NEW YORK - The New York Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange announced an alliance Wednesday that extends the NYSEs global reach and could lead to an eventual combination of the worlds two largest financial markets.

The broad, non-exclusive agreement announced by NYSE Chief Executive John Thain and TSE President Taizo Nishimuro allows the two stock markets to cooperate on joint developments such as financial products, mutual listings and technology.

The deal comes amid a backdrop of mass consolidation between domestic and global exchanges, highlighted by the NYSEs transformation into the first trans-Atlantic market with its recent acquisition of Paris-based exchange operator Euronext NV. The NYSE, which is competing fiercely with the Nasdaq Stock Market Inc., just weeks ago announced that it had led a team of investors to buy a 20 percent stake in Indias largest financial market, the Mumbai-based National Stock Exchange.

The agreement with the TSE gives the New York exchange an entree into the Pacific. It is also a first step toward a possible merger or acquisition between the two exchanges when the TSE becomes a public company in 2009.

Thain made it clear during the news conference that the two companies planned some form of combination in the future, saying, Were also setting the stage for a potential capital linkage.

The two exchanges did not offer any details of what form that would take, but Nishimuro said in prepared remarks, I strongly believe that this agreement will be a good starting point for a much stronger tie-up with the NYSE and will contribute to the benefit of various market participants of our respective markets.

Under the terms of the agreement, NYSE Group and the TSE will establish working groups to discuss such things as infrastructure, technology and trading issues, as well as market data products and regulation and governance of listed companies. They also will examine ways to enable companies who are listed on only one exchange to have better access to investors from the other.

The agreement between the two exchanges was hammered out not only by two of their respective nations most visible business leaders, but between two close allies and friends. Thain and TSE President Taizo Nishimuro have maintained a friendship after they met in 2001 during U.S.-Japan business talks.

Thain and Nishimuro met several times over the past few weeks, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and at a meeting of exchange leaders held in Paris. Both also spoke before the Japan Society in New York on Tuesday, but neither confirmed completion of a cooperation agreement.

The Tokyo exchange is in the midst of demutuilization, much like the NYSE did before it went public last year, and would not be able to have any cross shareholdings with the NYSE until that is complete.

One obstacle both exchanges face is symmetry between the regulatory bodies that govern them, Thain and Nishimuro both said Tuesday. In addition, companies based in Japan and in the U.S. have different regulatory standards to guarantee they are safe and liquid.

Nishimuro said there would have to be harmony between them, a process that could take a number of years. Last week, the U.S. and European stock market regulators inked an agreement to join forces considering NYSEs takeover of Euronexts five regional exchanges.

The chief executives of both exchanges will talk at least once a quarter to review progress on the agreement, and may exchange some personnel if necessary, the companies said.

The NYSE is on a global expansion campaign, having acquired Euronext and announcing the National Stock Exchange deal earlier this month. The NYSE has said it intends to make similar deals around the world.

Covering three major time zones has become a priority for the NYSE, which is now in the midst of planning its integration with Euronext. Meanwhile, rival Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. is still pursuing a hostile takeover of the London Stock Exchange and has already expressed interest in striking a deal in Asia.

In Tokyo, leaders of Japans biggest exchange also are feeling pressure as rivals in Hong Kong and Singapore might also begin to expand. The Asian exchanges have fielded some of the worlds best stock performers last year. 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.