Vince Cable

The poor quality and overcrowding of police cells in Twickenham, Richmond and Teddington has been again highlighted by the Custody Visiting Panel in its annual report. Despite recent refurbishment and the installation of CCTV cameras, the panel again concludes that:

• There is a serious problem of cleanliness

• Too many mentally ill people, who should be in hospital, are being held in police cells

• Cell buzzers are not being regularly monitored

The local police are well aware of the problem but cannot obtain funding for a proper overhaul of custody suites. Vincent Cable MP said: "Police cells are, of course, not a hotel. But the people kept there are usually remand prisoners who have not been found guilty of an offence and deserve to be treated properly. Moreover, the acute shortage of cells means that people who should be remanded are having to be released on to the streets. This is one area where the Met Police are not up to scratch."