Ms Michelle Martyn:

With regard to designated centres, there was a recommendation in the Report of the Commission of Investigation into the Death of Gary Douch a long time ago. There is a prolonged waiting list of 28 to 30 per day. Whatever way it goes. whether it is a designated centre within the prison or outside the prison, as the CPT recommended, mentally ill prisoners should be kept and cared for in a hospital facility that is adequately equipped and which possesses appropriately trained staff. In the view of the CPT, the facility could be a civil mental hospital or a specifically equipped psychiatric facility in the prison system. Whatever course is chosen, the accommodation capacity of the psychiatric facility should be adequate and there should not be a prolonged waiting period before a person is transferred to a psychiatric facility. It was noted in the Gary Douch report that this should be 72 hours and, in the UK, there is a recommendation of 14 days. The transfer is quite low at 34% but we do not know how many prisoners are waiting to be transferred here, the length of time or the number of prisoners in special observation cells. Mental Health Reform indicated last year indicated an individual was in the system for 8.5 months. Now is the time to decide.