35 Selected topics from 2019 The NPM organised a panel discussion on solitary confinement in Norwegian prisons during the Arendalsuka event. Solitary confinement in security cells The report also focuses on the most intrusive form of solitary confinement in Norwegian prisons: the use of security cells. During our visits, we have found that the physical conditions in security cells in several prisons have been deplorable. With the exception of a mattress on the floor, security cells are completely bare. The size of several such cells was below the international minimum standard.2 Food is slid onto the floor through a hatch, which, in many instances, is situated near the squat toilet. There is little or no possibility of looking out of many of the security cells. Some cells are fully lit 24/7. This seriously undermines the inmate's possibility of sleep and their notion of time. Such sensory deprivation attests to alarmingly low levels of knowledge about the risks of solitary confinement. 2 Our findings show that security cells are often used for people experiencing a personal crisis or severe mental crisis with a risk of suicide or self-harm. Many of the staff in a number of prisons have shown that they do not have the capacity to deal with people in crisis in any other way than using security cells. This is the opposite of what people in acute life crises need – namely to be in touch with empathetic people who listen. Findings have also shown that staff lack training and safe procedures for how to follow up inmates in security cells, both to prevent the detrimental effects of solitary confinement and to ensure that no inmates are placed there longer than the law allows for such an intrusive measure. After its visit to Norway in 2018, the CPT stated that cells measuring less than six square metres must only be used for a few hours at a time.