Let the private sector run cells in police stations, says watchdog

Published on Monday 7 April 2008 23:02

MINISTERS have been urged to consider privatising the running of custody cells in Scotland's police stations.

In a critical report published today, the country's police watchdog says there is "no compelling reason" for such cells to be run by police forces.

Paddy Tomkins, the Chief Inspector of Constabulary, suggests privatising the management of these units – or putting them under the control of new national body the Scottish Police Services Authority – would deliver savings that would free up officers for front-line duties.

His report calls for improvements in the design of police cells and how they are run, and recommends that the country's eight forces carry out a review into how they affect prisoners' welfare and human rights.

The report adds: "Before embarking on projects that involve new units, forces should look to the future and consider alternatives (to police management of custody facilities].

"So too should the Scottish Government. In some parts of England, for example, custody provision is privatised.

"Certainly, as an efficiency measure, centralising provision within and across forces merits consideration (with or without privatisation), as does the possible role of the Scottish Police Services Authority in managing or procuring this.

"There is currently a requirement for police officer involvement in the process of accepting prisoners into custody … Beyond this role there is no compelling operational reason for the custody and care of people arrested or detained by police to remain within the day-to-day management of police forces."

Privatising police cells would be the latest in a string of private sector encroachments into prisoner security. Transporting prisoners from police cells to court was privatised in 2004. Five years earlier, the first private prison, at Kilmarnock, opened. A second, at Addiewell in West Lothian, will open next year.

And it is the latest in a string of traditional police functions that Mr Tomkins has controversially suggested should be taken away from individual police forces.

Last December, he came under attack from senior officers after calling for a Scotland-wide "supra-force" to deal with counter-terrorism, firearms support and motorways.

Today's report highlights a number of improvements that he says should be made to reduce the risk to prisoners in police custody.

It recommends that police equip cells with expensive "life signs monitoring" technology that can detect when someone stops breathing. The equipment costs thousands of pounds per cell and has been widely introduced in England and Wales, but in Scotland, Elgin was the only station to have it during the inspection.

Among the other issues highlighted are the lack of washing facilities in many cells, the placement of emergency alarms in cells and the height of beds. Concerns about invasion of privacy from CCTV coverage of cells are also raised.

Last night, Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, said: "We don't think privately run police custody facilities are any different to privately run prisons, and we don't support them."

DEATH IN CUSTODY PROBE

AN INVESTIGATION into the death of an Edinburgh woman in a police cell is continuing, police said yesterday.

Angela Smith, 28, a mother of two, was found dead the day after a drugs raid at her flat in January.

Ms Smith, of Southhouse Square, was taken to St Leonard's police station, one of only a few which has nurses based in its custody suite.

Her death certificate states her cause of death as "unascertained (pending laboratory studies)".

A fatal accident inquiry will be held into Ms Smith's death, as is standard practice with deaths in custody.

Lothian and Borders Police has nine custody suites, which last year dealt with 36,924 people.

The latest figures show there were eight deaths in custody during 2005-6, compared with three the previous year.

The annual HM Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland report said these deaths included those who died en route to police stations, arrested people taken to hospital for treatment before detention, those recently released from custody and those otherwise with the police.