Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Prisoners to be locked up in police cells
PRISONERS will be held in police cells for the first time in 14 years as jails are running out of space.
Labour accused the Tories of slashing 10,000 prison places.
But Justice Minister Damian Hinds blamed a surge in court cases after barristers went on strike.
Since it began in April, the jail population has risen from 79,800 to 82,700, with 1,700 on remand.
Mr Hinds added: “This is a procedure to ensure our prison system can operate during periods of high demand.”
But the Police Federation said: “We are expecting police officers to be social workers, mental health specialists, ambulance drivers and now prison officers.”