PRIME Minister Tony Blair has hailed a new £4.5m school for children with severe learning difficulties as one of the best in the world.

Mr Blair and his wife Cherie formally opened the Portland School, in Sunderland, which also caters for autistic youngsters.

But the couple refused to answer reporters' questions on whether their son Leo had been given the combined measles mumps and rubella (MMR) jab, which has been linked to autism.

Instead, they mingled with the children, aged between 13 and 19, and helped with various activities.

Mr Blair told the children, staff and parents that he felt "overawed" by his visit.

He said: "I think this school is as good as anything I have ever seen - what a fantastic building it is. It must be as good as anything that exists anywhere in Europe, if not the world.

"The dedication of the people working here should give pride to the whole of our country."

Portland School opened in September and provides facilities for youngsters with profound learning difficulties, including paramedic rooms, light sensory areas, and sound and hydrotherapy facilities.

Despite arriving late, and only being scheduled to stay for about 30 minutes, the couple stayed on the premises for more than an hour.

Mrs Blair also visited Teesside to open a £330,000 breast unit at the University Hospital of North Tees, in Stockton.

A patron of Breast Cancer Care, she said she was delighted to cut the ribbon at the facility, which began serving patients in Teesside, North Yorkshire and South Durham in May.

"New facilities such as these are absolutely vital in the fight against cancer," she said.