THREE years may sound like a relatively light sentence for a man who was at one point facing the death penalty, but Gary Glitter’s time in Vietnamese custody will be extremely tough.

“Conditions are terrible,” Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said. “Creature comforts are nonexistent, prisoners sleep on mats on concrete floors, food is minimal and there are widespread lice.

“There is also regular abuse, although I don’t expect Glitter to be abused because it would be too hard to cover it up. He is luckier than his cellmates in that respect.

“He may be able to use bribes to get food and medical supplies into the jail, which could help him with the other prisoners, but sharing one of the larger cells with the wrong people can certainly be unpleasant.”

Although he could be released before the end of the year, Glitter’s legal problems are unlikely to end there. While the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that “it is up to the country issuing the deportation to decide” where he goes, any return to Britain will be closely monitored by the authorities here.

The British Embassy in Vietnam, which has provided consular assistance to Glitter, said: “UK nationals who travel abroad with the explicit intent to abuse children will remain the focus of UK law enforcement activity.”

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