With the clear plastic front perhaps the shoplifters could also be seen by other shoppers, making their crime clear?

David Thomas, Reading,

This is like something out of a bleak futuristic novel from the 1930s. We are living in the hell we read about when we were young, and fondly imagined would never happen because our generations were too liberal, inclusive, and fair.
Or is it simply a return to the dim feudal days of the past, with a Pound in every village?
Dark days indeed. Badged with a logo.

John Pownall, Bridport, Dorset

Oh, come on! It is time to cut the gimics and deal with the causes of crime. Reactive "lock em up" policing is not always right.
We also need to us our U.K. Police Resources more efficiently.
Why not use a service that has been in place overseas for over 20 years, where their are less police per population than we have in the U.K.?

Shoplifters are brought into police staions but are seen and assessed by trained Contracted Civilians, who assess, look at the causation, & decide whether charging is the route to take. Referrals and monitoriing are done by that unit. (It is staffed 24/7 with two staff and 30 trained volunteers.)
The police turn around time for such cases is fast & they get back on the road swiftly.
Also several police forces that I know have a car with a Social worker and Mental Health worker, riding with Police for instant assessment, intervention and diversion as needed.

Time to change from "More policing" to "Smarter Policing" and better use of resources!

Pat , Merseyside, England

To have this facility in the shopping precinct could breed resentment from the offender and members of the public.

Tesco's and other retail establishments should release their staff to address offending behaviour either as Panel Members at Referral Panel meetings or victim's of commercial or retail crime

From my experience the retail and commercial industry do not play their part within their local community in a constructive manner but would rather pay huge insurance premiums or employ bouncers, and as such we all know such costs are passed down to the consumers and general public.

In essence what we really want is more police officers out there on our streets rather than filling in copious forms for the statical data base for our politicians in the police station, where ever it is sited.

T. Penhearow, Bournemouth, Dorset

Are they going to come in different sizes?
Seven prisoners or less (fewer).

John, Eastbourne,

"Mobile units would also be used to deal with protesters at key defence installations..."

So we are going to lock up protesters now? Hmmmm. Sitting a little to the right here aren't we?

matt, cardiff,

Thia is not really new.......In some police areas there are already mobile police units with integral cells......these are used for football matches and the like........just use more of them and take the police to the problem not vice versa

Peter, Midlands, UK

Why not just have a ring on the wall you can chain them to. We found them very useful in Australia

Roger, brisbane, australia

What happens when they call their family/ friends on their mobiles, and they arrive in a 4x4 and rip the cage off of the walls! Who ends up paying for the reapirs? Of course the consumer. An arrest for shoplifting/ theft should be an arrest, which is dealt with swiftly and professionally, not locking people in a cage until the police arrive and then having a human rights abuse case brought against the company or individual security operative!

What next? A portable road side jail for those that are driving under the influence, or using their mobile phones!!

Mark, London,

looks like hitlers back.. yeah. i woke up and freedom was gone

sean deni, london,

Is this a a joke? It's August 1st not April 1st!

Liz, scotland,

I am all for the simplicity of stocks .

Dave Madley, Alicante, Spain

Will high spending crims get to trade in their Nectar Points for custodial reductions, or priveleges I wonder?

James Fox, London, England

When I began to read the sentence that began "Suspects would be held in a small room with a clear plastic front so that they were visible to ... " I expected for some reason for the sentence to continue with the word "shoppers" ! I was initially shocked by this scheme but on relection, as long as the mini jails are staffed by, and only staffed by, police, I beleive it makes sense.

Dave Edgars, Wakefield, UK

I won't be shopping in Tesco again if there's a jail full of drunks attached to it. All part of Labour's 'pushing the problem back into the community' along with blocking off roads and encouraging kids to run riot. Well , sorry, this policy won't be a problem that I'll take on. I hope others follow suit too.

Judy , Liverpool, england

Oh dear...the lawyers are worried...says it all....go ahead with it and keep these trouble makers out of the way of decent people. The lawyers will have to do without their huge fees in the name of public protection.

Carole Preston, Birmingham,

There seem to be plenty of posters objecting to the notion of a good standard of care. But not everyone held in these facilities will be guilty.

Many years ago when I was young, I was falsely accused of shoplifting and held in a store manager's office whilst an assistant lied to his boss, saying that he had seen me steal the item concerned. I was very frightened. It was only when I persuaded the manager to make a phone call to the person who had given me the item that they believed me when I said that I had not stolen it. For years afterwards, whenever I went into a shop, I thought that people would think I was stealing and I still worry sometimes.

Ever since, I have remembered that people that have been detained are not necessarily guilty of the offence they are accused of, and that they should not be treated as guilty until proven so.

Sue, Birmingham, UK

This is ridiculous.

Use the money to put more police permanently on duty in the shopping centres to discourage crime.

All that will happen is each detainee will need to be guarded and watched in case there is an incident and police will be tied up anyway.

More police and take them to the station to be processed properly.

Phil, Chichester,

'But while the proposal won support from some forces as a way of easing the burden on officers, magistrates expressed serious reservations' >
Are we all not suprised that any effort to tackle crime will be put down by magistrates and judges?.
Who next? the human rights activists and all the other lilly livered liberals who have brought our country to the sorry mess it is today.?

Case, Newquay,

“Short-term holding facilities should not be restricted to shopping centres, but should be an option that the police should use at other facilities such as smaller police stations"

We had them when I was in the Special Constabulary some years ago. They didn't have the sexy term "short-term holding facilities", of course, we just called them "cells". Then the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) came along and many of the smaller stations lost their cells because they weren't luxurious enough for prisoners. Then even the bigger stations lost their cells, and prisoners have to be taken to a main police station 10 miles away to be held.

Are we going back to the old days where every police station had its own cells (sorry, short term holding facilities), or are we going to have something which doesn't comply with PACE and will result in every prisoner held there being acquitted because the police haven't obeyed the rules?

Chris, Lichfield, UK

As long as there won't be a Tesco Extra Value jail cell we're laughing....

Martin, St Andrews, Scotland

Sounds like a good idea, but, will the persons still get their Tesco, or Asda shopping vouchers. It may be against their human rights not to do this, when they have being doing their Tesco/ Asda shoplifting!

Jim Stewart, Anstruther, Scotland

Can we also introduce stocks, so that we can throw our rotten veg at them?

Laura Kingdon, Cwmbran, UK

Heaven help protect us from these well meaning human rights activists.
I'm pleased to see most of the comments support the idea ( I have some concern that the 'clear plastic front' may preclude conjugal visits - it may encourage some to offend!*?!)

Ian Downs, Carnforth, UK

I like the 'mobile' option. That way, they can be at the stadium, shopping centres, fairgrounds, as needed. Also, unless I missed a paragraph, I didn't gather that these 'mini-jails' would be "on parade" but, rather, on location. I don't think public ridicule (ie, stocks) is the right comparison. More of a caravan for offenders (or holding tank for the accused). Also, in defense of the idea, the "safeguards" alluded to may range from cells where people can't harm themselves to processes to not leave someone vulnerable. For instance, a 15-year old shoplifter shouldn't be placed in the same cell as a 23-year old drunken brawler. I think keeping the "accommodations" in line with the offenses is sufficient for "high standards" - but safeguards should be just that. I do like the idea of a £50/hr fee for the falsely accused/imprisoned. (Nice touch, whoever made that suggestion.) If coming from the constable's check (rather than separate public funds) should keep things moving.

DHL, Portland, USA/Maine

They dont even do that in the People's Republic of China. Basically you would have jails "everywhere" where you can be picked up for what ever the police deem "anti-social". This country used to be "free" now we have ID cards, mobile jails for faster processing of "criminals" (and for criminals please read protestors exercising their freedom of speech).....this country is letting the fear of terrorism and the fear that people are out of control (acheived by the liberal use of statistics) to mother us all to death

Andrew Wilson, Bishops Stortford, Herts

These units should have opera playing in each cell holding anyone under the age of 20. It would drive the slack jawed teenage occupant to distraction and probably ensure they'd never offend again. Plus it would have the added bonus of putting them through the kind of misery they inflict on fellow public transport users with their nit wit, hip hop and rap blaring out of mobile phones.

Mark, London, England

This is not new, these places already exist in many places, they are called non designated police stations where, under PACE, suspects can be held for up to six hours. The police post at a large retail complex in my area has often been used to process compliant offenders. What's all the fuss about?

Nick Quine, Bath,

I simply don't understand people's concern about the well being of the offenders whilst being held. Perhaps if we were a bit harder on the people who commit crime, they wouldn't do it again. Why should shoplifters and football hooligans have "high standards of care" when held in the units? If they had any self respect they wouldn't shoplift and be a hooligan. I'm all for mobile units, and immediate detention of people who commit crime.

Michael, London, UK

Currently, police in Melksham are reluctant to arrest anyone as they have to take them all the way to Trowbridge station to be "processed". This is a pattern that must be being repeated all over the country. How did we get into this mess in the first place? Why did we close so many police stations? Are our politicians at last beginning to learn a little common sense?

Brian, Southampton,

"What will the next step be? Local concentration camps???"

Lord save us. Godwin's rule strikes again

Mark, Worthing, UK

I fear the police state has arrived and is thriving, who will arrest these individuals, the store manager, and on what grounds? Fortress Brittain is rapidly becoming stalag Brittain where we are all now under suspiscion until proven guilty by whatever method fair or foul. I am not a human rights activist but as I have watched our freedoms and democracy stripped away from us bit by bit over the last ten years I can't help feeling that one day our odious politicians will pronounce themselves MPs for life, elections have ceased and we now have a new President. Those that can get out of this mad house of a country should go now before we are locked down tight and its too late.

Steve P, Leeds, England

The basic premise is good but in practice this will never work. I imagine the incidence of legal claims will increase if this is put into practice and who will be liable should any complaint be made by the suspect?

" Suspects would be held in a small room with a clear plastic front so that they were visible to custody officers. " - I would advocate that suspects be held in a small room behind a clear plastic front in view of the rest of the store. Public humiliation usually works best. Bring back the stocks!

Gray, London, UK

This is just a way for the Police to conveniently avoid the PACE legislation, and another step towards a police state. Who will decide who should be detained, what powers of arrest would be avalaible and by whom will they be operated?.

It is time we all looked at the real problem which is, in my view, the reluctance of senior police officers to engage with what they consider to be minor crime.

For far too long we have accepted a growing lack of interest by the police in matters such as burglary and theft, after all it's easier to issue a crime number than actually take any action.

It is time this attitude was curtailed and some real management skills used by our senior police officers instead of this never ending drift to curb personal freedoms for the convenience of the Home Office and the Police.

John, Wakefield, West Yorks

There is away of cutting crime by increasing jobs, social educaion and locking up the all the petty organsied criminals they lend them money and they steal and a fence sells the items on, it the stuff does not get shipped abroad.

Stop items that are stolen going abroad and being sold.

We don't nead jails we need jobs for those who steal or get drunk or activate antisocial behaviour, with money in their pocket they don't nead to steal only buy drugs from dealers who should be locked up.

Peter, Hastings, UK

And the first time a couple of bored young hardened hooligans, possibly drunk or on drugs, relieve their boredom by beating up an otherwise innocent youngster whose only offence was to cheek a store security guard who pays the price?

What happens if there is no transport to the local station because the police are busy with a larger incident - does the store let people go or "bend the rules" to hold them a little longer?

You would take a struggling young parent who lifts a jar of baby food and stick her and the baby in with abusive drunks?

Putting powers of arrest and detention in the hands of trained officers is one thing. Policing on the cheap by in-store security guards is the slow introduction of private police forces with no accountability.

Bring back our local bobbies and police stations!

KR, Stockport,

Robin Hart is absolutely correct, the liberal politically correct elite are being promoted to the top positions in the police, prison service and other public bodies. Those considered to have the 'right stuff'' twenty years ago are now considered to be dinosaurs and are leaving the police and prison service in droves( or counting the days to retirement!). How will we rid ourselves of these liberal lefty toadies when the public realize the policy is a downright disaster?

R.B., Leicester,

Now one won't be able to visit a supermarket without being reminded of what a ghastly country England has become.

Tackle the cause of crime in this rotten part of society. Whatever became of the word - Discipline.

David Smith, Cannes, France

Test the jails out first by sticking some of the Corporate retail, bank, and main phone company bosses inside for making obscene profits from their own people.

K Urban, London, UK

Great deterrent ....

Marni, London,

Absolutely right, Brian! But no doubt standing in a perfectly acceptable little holding for more than a couple of hours would somehow breach the thug's "human rights", but it doesn't matter about the human rights of the victims these criminals have abused, ie. the right not to be punched, stolen from...insignificant things like that.

Oliver, London, UK

Here in Hertford there is a new Police Station on the way..
..but it is not going to have any "custody suites"

If the need arises the detained person(s) can be sent to Hoddesdon or Stevenage.

Strange state of affairs as Hertford is the county town and the population is around 25,,000, not exactly a sleepy village and at the weekend the town centre is like "The Alamo/Vietnam"

Mind you to see a copper at the weekend is pretty rare, they usually go around in gangs of eight checking the takeaways don't stay open too late because the take-aways allegedly cause all the trouble at closing time, not the youths fighting in the pubs and clubs.

Kev Somers, Hertford, UK

Excellent idea, I can add a vandal , football hooligan or shoplifter on my shopping list

chidlowbilly, Romford, Essex

The police "lost the streets some fifteen years ago when more liberal officers,many with Doctorates,started to rise to the top of the pile.They,like many politicians,had no real experience of life,apart from two years as probationary constables(Think Hull Police Force as an example.)Political correctness and edicts from above effectively neutered the police on the street.
Now they want holding pens in public places.Now what does that remind you of?

robin Hart, Sutton Coldfield, U.K.

Makes me uneasy; I haven't been to the UK for a couple of years now, but there was one opinion that made me think, saying being in the UK now felt like being in Germany about 1938 ...

KDB, Coburg,

There is good sense in this proposal, but there is also the danger that if detention becomes easier, police will detain people wrongly more often. There is a simple remedy. If someone is wrongly detained for a few hours they should be paid fifty pounds an hour compensation, out of the pocket of the arresting officer and not out of public funds.

Richard Baron, London, UK

Yes all very good, could we also bring back the old fashioned "Stocks" and have them placed by the fruit and veg section of every major supermarket. Hours of fun throwing by the kids while we shop, prisoners get punished, and fruit and veg sales rocket. It s win-win !

Bruce, London , Great Britain

Many years ago we had local Police stations with cells, football grounds with detention rooms, now we have 'custody centres' many miles away from the point of arrest. Is this just another example of masking the fact that with 'progress' and 'efficiency' we have made a fundamental mistake and now need to re-invent the wheel?

Ian R, Holt, UK

This approach has its roots in the use of stocks and other punishments that identified offenders in the community.

That is fine and should be supported as much better than anything we now have becuase it will impact immediately and isolote the offender in the group.

What we need is a really robust review procedure to keep the police and civil servants in line with the knowledge that if they abuse it they will be caught and punished themselves

michael taylor, delhi, india

Perfectly sensible idea, that will save many police officers hours of work arranging transportation between locations for minor offenders.

It is an extension of the community police stations that are located in some areas, such as shopping parades, so why not?

Roy Ellor, Salford, UK

Perhaps it is a good idea but I would not wish to shop at places where there were such 'jails'. What will the next step be? Local concentration camps???

Janet Hughes, Montgomery, Wales, UK

Such a step brings with it the possibility of many many more people being falsely locked up. The dinner story of the future: 'i had my four hours of infamy....'

Soon there will be so many jails, that it will be a short step to connect all the walls together.

Des, Amsterdam,

On many occasion, whilst queuing up at the Tesco check-out counter, I feel trapped, especially with the shopper in front, attempting to empty the weekly shop from the overflowing trolley, and trying to control two squabbling children at the same time. The scheme makes sense, short term imprisonment at no extra cost, the sentence being anything from one to three visits to the check-out counter. May I suggest that if the offender voluntarily helps the said shopper, time should be given off for good behavior.

M.Fishman, London,

A very good idea, pre PACE every police station had cells that were available for holding local prisoners. Now officers have to travel miles to the nearest "designated" station. Often they spend more time travelling than it takes to process the prisoner when they arrive. Also if they are dealing with a prisoner "on their own ground" they can quickly go out from the station to deal with another urgent incident. Something they cannot do if they are in a Custody Suite miles from their home patrol area.

Bob Mileham, Chertsey, UK

It's nearly right, but it misses the point - the treatment of young offenders SHOULD involve delays of four hours, but not as an administrative feature - it should be part of the punishment.
The only punishment for young offenders is one that involves boredom, with no opportunity to brag to their friends afterwards. No teenage hero can brag to his or her friend how he boldly stared at a blank wall for four hours.
I have always been amazed that the value of boredom - the greatest fear of young people - has never been used as a serious weapon against the little so-and sos, of whom, years ago, I was one.

John Carty, Medellin, Colombia

I trust these jails will offer the inmates access to 'phones,play stations,gymnasiums,satellite TV ,a well stocked library,meals suitable for vegetarians etc. and be able to ensure the prisoners religious requirements are not forgotten.Of course conjugal visits will need to be organised.. Otherwise prepare for a host of claims for compensation for breach of Human Rights.

Mike, Dunstable, England

well this is going to lead to security officers doing the job of cops in your local tescos i mean what a cop out, sorry for the pun.

i can just see these people now, shades handcuffs and soon they will ask for batons and stab proof vest, trust me. the wild west here we come.

fcobod, shanghai, china

"...there would have to be safeguards to ensure high standards of care for those held in the units..."

yes of course, we have to give tea and biscuits to all the drunks and thieves. perhaps they could put a mini-bar in there too, or a pool table.

it's a jail, not a recreation centre. bare walls and bars, that's all you need.

Brian, London, UK

We used to have short time holding stations, they were called local police stations, they were fully staffed and open 24 hours a day. Would it not be better to revert to a tried and tested system rather than try to re-invent the wheel.

Graham , London,