V)  Prison overcrowding The CPT recently issued standards concerning the size of living space per prisoner. 35 The Committee has been issuing requirements for living space since the 1990s. Although I use these standards during all my visits, they have not been clearly defined in a single document to date and as such they represent rather a result of the application in practice. In the document, the CPT addresses in detail also the aspects of the system of shared accommodation and calls on the Member States to apply the existing minimum space standards as follows, in particular when building new prisons: •• single-occupancy cell: at least 6 m² of living space + sanitary annexe; •• 2 prisoners in a cell: at least 10 m² (6 m² + 4 m²) of living space + sanitary annexe; •• 3 prisoners in a cell: at least 14 m² (6 m² + 4 m²) of living space + sanitary annexe; •• 4 prisoners in a cell: at least 18 m² (6 m² + 12 m²) of living space + sanitary annexe 36 I recommend that the General Directorate of the Prison Service of the Czech Republic: •• Aims at accommodating convicts in single-occupancy cells or double cells when restoring existing accommodation facilities and/or building new ones. •• Takes into account the CPT standards regarding the size of living space per prisoner when restoring and/or building new accommodation capacities. 2) Other adverse effects of overcrowding Inadequate time for food consumption is one of the possible adverse effects of prison overcrowding. In some of the prisons I visited, convicts had around 8 minutes for consuming their food (lunch) because the capacity of the dining room was not designed to “serve” all the convicts within a reasonable period of time. I consider at least 15 minutes as a reasonable time for consuming food (lunch). Another possible adverse effect of overcrowding is that the prison must place convicts in spaces that are not a standard accommodation section. In one of the prisons visited, convicts were not placed in a standard section due to a lack of capacity but instead in a special section with a “regime” resembling a crisis block. The section concerned was subject to a stricter “regime” than a standard section, with restricted activities, extended daytime locking times, a reduced treatment programme, etc. Prison overcrowding adversely affects also maintenance and fostering of the convict’s family ties. Convicts very often complain about rejection of their application for transfer to a prison located closer to the family’s place of residence on the grounds of the desired prison being over capacity.  37 Prison overcrowding also limits the effectiveness of motivational factors. In some of the prisons visited, the differences between the first, second and third permeable groups of internal differentiation 35 EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE AND INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT (CPT). Living space per prisoner in prison establishments: CPT standards. CPT/Inf (2015) 44. [online]. Strasbourg: European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) [retrieved on 18 January 2016]. Available at: http:// www.cpt.coe.int/en/working-documents/cpt-inf-2015 – 44-eng.pdf 36 Ibid. 37 Cf. also chapter 10. Visits. /18/