TNAG-2156-FCO40-3076-International-Covenant-on-Civil-and-Political-Rights-(ICCPR)-1990 — Page 37

relating to article 7. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 does not apply to Scotland, but similar rights of complaint apply in Scotland. An explanatory leaflet is available at all police stations indicating the various avenues through which a complaint may be made.

Prison conditions

England and Wales

164. The Government is committed to reducing overcrowding in prisons in England and Wales, and has embarked on the largest ever prison building programme. In the 10 years between 1985 and 1995, 28 new prisons will have been built in England and Wales, 8 of which have now opened. Together with additions and improvements to existing establishments, 25,000 new places will have been added to the prison estate by the mid-1990s. Prison design has been rethought. A new prison design brief for training in prisons was published in March 1989 and will form the basis for all future prisons of this type. The new design lays stress on creating as normal an environment as possible within the demands of security and on encouraging relationships between prisoners and staff. The design combines what has been learned from Victorian, 1970s and "new generation" designs. The building programme also covers the refurbishment and modernization of existing establishments, including the upgrading of facilities, the creation of extra places and the provision of access to sanitation.

165. The provision of access to sanitation is a major objective of the present building programme, and all new prisons have in-cell sanitation. In February 1989, the Home Secretary announced that in-cell sanitation was to be installed in many existing cells during the next seven years. This programme, together with other refurbishment work already scheduled, will reduce the 22,000 places without access to sanitation to about 8,000 by the end of the century. To achieve this, the Prison Service is using a range of methods to install sanitation and, wherever possible, schemes are being used which do not involve the displacement of large numbers of inmates while the work is being done.

Scotland

166. An extensive exercise is being carried out to identify existing deficiencies in the prison estate with a view to improving the standard of available accommodation. As in England and Wales, providing access to night sanitation is a priority and efforts will be made to provide for a majority of inmates to have their own cells.

Detention in police cells

167. As a result of overcrowding and industrial action by the Prison Officers' Association in England and Wales, some prisoners (most on remand) have been held in police cells pending their admission to prison.

168. The law explicitly provides that prisoners may be held in this way where it is not immediately practicable to secure their admission in a Prison Service establishment. This is designed to provide a measure of last resort at times of exceptional pressure: police cells are not regarded as an alternative source of accommodation for prisoners and their use for this