A YOUNG man who has accused a former aide to Prime Minister Tony Blair of rape, only told his psychologist about the alleged attacks to "get her attention" because he was in love with her, a court was told yesterday.

The trial of Martyn Locklin, at Teesside Crown Court, heard that the man, now serving a life sentence for murder, told his female psychologist in prison that he was in love with her.

But, said Tim Roberts, defending, the man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was told the psychologist could not work with him any more after he refused to admit to the murder of which he had been convicted.

However, said Mr Roberts, she suggested they talked about allegations of abuse he had made during his murder trial.

Mr Roberts said: "You would have been very upset if she had stopped visiting you. She was a kind and interested person. She visited regularly and talked all about you.

"You wanted to keep seeing her, but because you denied your part in the murder, there was nothing to talk about.

"So she suggested to you that you talk about the sexual abuse. So that was the way of continuing to see her, if you spoke to her about this."

He said that just after he declared love for the psychologist, the young man wrote a six-page story about Mr Locklin, alleging sexual abuse.

Mr Roberts said: "It was a complete fantasy concocted by you as part of this relationship you were having with your psychologist. You only wanted to get attention from her."

The young man's parents told the court they had found Mr Locklin tapping at their son's window in the early hours of the morning, in 1995.

And a friend of the then teenager said he had told her he had been raped by Mr Locklin in the past, but "swore her to secrecy".

Mr Locklin, 41, of Ladybower, Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, faces three counts of indecent assault against one boy, and two counts of indecent assault against another.

He also faces a charge involving a serious sexual assault, two counts of rape and one of indecent assault against a third boy.

The Sedgefield borough and Great Aycliffe town councillor denies all the charges. The offences are alleged to have taken place between 1988 and 1996.

The trial continues.