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Police cells need upgrade
•I UNDERSTAND that Home Office prisoners are shortly to be accommodated in London police cells. At this point in time it is not clear whether this will affect Camden.
Some of Camden’ police cells date from the Victorian era. All have a mattress, blanket, pillow and toilet; nothing else. There are no facilities for washing within cells and limited shower facilities. Access to fresh air, recreation and exercise are absent, as are opportunities for association.
Some 15,000 people are detained each year in a police cell in Camden. The addition of Home Office prisoners can only exacerbrate conditions for police staff who work in custody suites.
In addition there is an acute shortage of cells across London but this is secondary to the totally inappropiate use of police cells to detain anyone for more than 24 hours. I hope the Met will do all in their power to prevent prisoners being kept in these totally inappropriate conditions.
MICK FARRANT
Chairman, Camden ICV Panel
Oak Village, NW5 |
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