Police detention centres X 2.6.9 Detainees shall be detained with respect for their dignity and in the gentlest way possible. Inadequate fixtures and fittings in police detention centres On their monitoring visits, the commissions regularly examine the condition of fixtures and fittings in the police detention centres. There were deficits in this area too in 2020. However, it must be stated that any deficits identified are often quickly removed and the commissions can confirm the implementation of promised improvement measures. On the monitoring visit to Wiener Neustadt police detention centre, the commission observed that the connecting area between the floor of the security cell and one of the cell walls was not grouted to a waterproof standard. This made it almost impossible to spray-clean the cell if it is badly soiled. There was a risk that the dirty water could seep into the masonry and cause further damage. In response to the recommendation to tile the connecting area between the cell floor and the cell wall, the Federal Ministry of the Interior reported that the Police Department of Lower Austria had commissioned a cost estimate and planned implementation of the measure in 2020. Wiener Neustadt police detention centre The commission observed on the monitoring visit to Hernalser Gürtel police detention centre in March 2020 that there were only two working shower places or showers for 52 detainees housed on one floor of the building. The NPM criticised this particularly because on the previous visit in October 2019 the manager had reported about the installation of showerheads that cannot be manipulated. Hernalser Gürtel police detention centre The Federal Ministry of the Interior confirmed the defective fittings and reported about the installation of new shower panels that cannot be manipulated in the shower rooms. In March 2020, the Federal Ministry of the Interior mentioned that the defective fittings had been repaired between the two monitoring visits. However, after the repairs, the detainees had removed several fittings and showerheads. On the monitoring visit to Linz police detention centre, which is operated in a container building, the commission observed that all of the detention rooms (for the detention of persons for up to a maximum of 48 hours) had neither a toilet nor a sink. This lack of fittings was contrary to the standards in the Directive on Workplaces. Furthermore, the commission considered the fact the detainees had to ask to go to the toilet and had to be accompanied by the staff to the toilet opposite the detention rooms to be questionable from a human rights perspective. Linz police detention centre 148