The UK Ministry of Justice has said that new rules that allow juvenile detention facilities to hold minors in solitary confinement for up to 22 hours a day could remain in force until 2022, The Guardian reports.
The rules are designed to curb the spread of the coronavirus epidemic, despite the fact that lockdown regulations have already been significantly relaxed beyond prison walls.
According to at least one lawyer representing a minor, the regulations are also being applied to youths who have not yet been convicted of a crime and are still on remand, and are having a very detrimental effect on their mental health.