54 NORWEGIAN PARLIAMENTARY OMBUDSMAN National Preventive Mechanism ANNUAL REPORT 2019 The custody instructions also include an ­important recommendation from the Parliamentary Ombudsman that body searches that include the removal of clothing cannot take place without an individual risk assessment. Should a body search be carried out, it must take place in a manner that ensures that the detainee is not fully naked. The NPM visiting a police custody cell. In March 2016, the National Police Directorate ­presented a proposal for a common national regulatory framework to be used by all police custody facilities. The Parliamentary Ombudsman commented on the directorate’s proposal in a consultation submission in April 2016, and subsequently on the directorate’s revised proposal in May 2018.25, 26 In November 2018, the National Police Directorate adopted the new national custody instructions with instructions explaining the rules in more detail.27 Many of our recommendations from visits to police custody facilities are reflected in the new instructions. According to the new instructions, all cells should have a clock, colour contrast between the floor and walls, adequate lighting, a sufficient amount of daylight and the possibility to dim the lights at night. The instructions stipulate important legal safeguards about the right to notify next-of-kin and contact a lawyer, and the right to contact a doctor when medical assistance is required. The detainees must also be informed of their rights in a language they understand, if necessary through an interpreter. They have a right to be given information in writing. We pay particular attention to these factors during our visits to police custody facilities. After our comments, new and more stringent rules have been introduced regarding placing several detainees in the same cell. The instructions also provide exhaustive rules on the use of coercive measures, such as hand cuffs in custody facilities and measures to safeguard the detainees’ health and safety when coercive measures are used. Both the Courts and the Ombudsman have criticised the use of solitary confinement in police custody facilities that is not strictly necessary. Detainees are henceforth entitled to associate with others to avoid solitary confinement. The police have a duty to assess whether there is a real need to use solitary confinement, and to implement measures to prevent solitary confinement and counteract harmful effects in instances where solitary confinement has been strictly necessary. In accordance with the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s recommendations, the instructions also contain rules for detainees’ right to medical assistance. When detainees are taken to the doctor, they should be able to speak directly and unsupervised to medical personnel, without police listening in on the conversation. The police must not be present in, or able to look into, the patient room, unless the medical personnel specifically request this or there is a risk of escape. Important clarifications have also been introduced to make it clear that the role of medical personnel in such instances is to provide healthcare, not ‘clearance for remand in custody’. 25 The Parliamentary Ombudsman's consultation submission – proposal for national custody instructions, 20 April 2016. 26 The Parliamentary Ombudsman's comment on a revised draft of the national custody instructions, 31 May 2018. 27 The National Police Directorate, Instructions for the use of police custody facilities (the Custody Instructions), Circular 2018/011, 9 November 2018 and Instructions for the use of police custody facilities, case no. 2016/00772 (same date).