PQs - June 2018
Parliamentary Questions asked of Government and answered in June 2018:
27 June 2018: HC 155280 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Kate Green (Labour) asked how many people were released from immigration detention on the basis of Rule 35(1) and Rule 35(3) reports at each Immigration Removal Centre in 2017 and 2016. Caroline Nokes replied, providing the total number of releases from IRCs on the basis of Rule 35 reports, from the government's transparency data. She also said she had attached a breakdown of Rule 35 releases into the sub categories of R35 (1) and R35 (3) from "provisional management information" but this was not included on Hansard.
27 June 2018: HC 156438 (Asylum: Detainees)
Kate Hollern (Labour) asked how many people are in indefinite detention as a result of their (a) asylum status and (b) status as a refugee being in dispute. Caroline Nokes said "The number of people held in detention as a result of the revocation or dispute of their refugee status is not held in a format which is reportable." but provided the number of people who have been detained and have raised an asylum claim from government statistics, showing that 12,916 of those entering detention in 2017 were 'asylum-detainees'.
27 June 2018: HC 156631 (Asylum: Children)
Kate Hollern (Labour) asked how many children were detained while awaiting the outcome of an application for asylum in 2017-18. Caroline Nokes replied, saying that "those under the age of 18 are not detained for consideration of their asylum claim." Immigration statistics show that 12,916 of those entering detention in 2017 were 'asylum-detainees'
25 June 2018: HC 155670 (Asylum: Detainees)
Steve McCabe (Labour) asked the Home Secretary whether he will make it his policy to grant discretionary leave to remain in the UK to asylum seekers who have waited a year or longer at immigration detention centres. Caroline Nokes said that there are "no plans to review the Discretionary Leave policy" and that "almost all asylum claims are processed in the community. Those who have their claim processed in detention are those who claim only after having been detained for removal, or who are detained for public protection reasons. We may also detain failed asylum seekers for removal if they refuse to leave the UK voluntarily."
21 June 2018: HC 154690 (Detainees: Sexual Harassment)
Luciana Berger (Labour) asked the Home Secretary how many allegations of sexual assault and harassment by staff have been made by detainees in detention centres in each of the last five years. Caroline Nokes replied, stating that there were "25 allegations of sexual assault made by detainees against staff at immigration removal centres between financial year 2014/15 (the earliest year for which data is available) and 2017/18. Of these 25 allegations, 2 were made in 2014/15, 3 in 2015/16, 6 in 2016/17 and 14 in 2017/18. This is provisional management information that is subject to change. It has not been assured to the standard of Official Statistics."
21 June 2018: HC 154693 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Luciana Berger (Labour) asked what assessment the Home Office has made of the psychological impact of detention on women released from immigration removal centres; and what support they provides to those women. Caroline Nokes replied but did not make reference to assessments made of psycholigcal impact. She said that detainees have ready access to "medical professionals and health care, including mental health services" and detention centres must provide women with information on organisations that provide gender specific support, and who support the needs of women detainees who have experienced violence or abuse. She also made reference to the release of women with ongoing health concerns and the support provided for them.
19 June 2018: HC 153809 (Mental Health Services)
In follow up to her question from the 4th June which did not receive an adequate response, Luciana Berger (Labour) asked how much money the Department of Health and Social Care has spent on commissioning mental health services to treat patients in prisons and immigration removal centres in each year for which information is available. Minister Jackie Doyle-Price said in reply "Since 2014, NHS England has been responsible for commissioning all health services in prescribed places of detention which include prisons, immigration removal centers, youth offender institutes, secure training centers and secure children’s homes. NHS England does not hold the information in the format requested."
14 June 2018: HL 8351 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Baroness Cox (Crossbench) asked how many people have been held in UK immigration detention centres for over two months in 2018. Baroness Williams of Trafford gave the statistics for the first quarter of 2018, from the government website. The number of people held, during this time, for 2 months or more is 1,067.
11 June 2018: HL 8352 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Baroness Cox (Crossbench) asked what percentage of people held in UK immigration detention centres for over one year have been subsequently removed from the UK since May 2017. Baroness Williams of Trafford replied, providing information from the government website.
Between 1st April 2017 and 31st March 2018, 27,429 people left detention. Of this number, 225 people left detention, having been detained for a year or more. Of the 225 people who left detention, 71 (32%) were returned from the UK and the remaining 154 (68%) were released into the community, either on bail or after being granted leave to remain.
8 June 2018: HL 8349 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Baroness Cox (Crossbench) asked how many people died in UK immigration detention centres from suicide or self-inflicted wounds between 1 March 2017 and 1 March 2018. Baroness Williams of Trafford replied on behalf of the government, explaining that any death in immigration detention is subject to investigation by the police, the coroner and the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. There were 8 deaths in that period, of these deaths "none has yet been determined by a coroner to be a self-inflicted death."
5 June 2018: HL 8068 (Immigration: Private Sector)
Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour) asked which functions of the immigration department of the Home Office are carried out by private contractors; and in each case, who are those contractors. Baroness Williams of Trafford responded on behalf of the Government and laid out that information in a table. Baroness Williams also provided information on Asylum Accommodation, Transport and Support Services, English language testing services and other Asylum-based and/or non-detention or removal related services etc.
Contract or the provision of operation, management and maintenance of Immigration Removal Centres:
Colnbrook, Harmondsworth and Campsfield Mitie Care and Custody
Brook House and Tinsley House G4S
Yarl's Wood Serco
Dungavel GEO
Contract for the provision of Pre-Departure Accommodation Welfare Services Welfare: G4S
Contract for the provision of In-country and Overseas Escorting, operation and management of Short Term Holding Facilities and Holding Rooms and related services: Mitie Care and Custody
Services Agreement for the provision of Travel Services for immigration purposes: Carlson Wagonlit UK Ltd
5 June 2018: HC 149067 (Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre)
Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat) asked whether the Home Office plans to respond to the Independent Monitoring Board at Campsfield House IRC Annual Report of 2017 within the six-week timeframe set out in DSO 04/2014. Minister for Immigration Caroline Nokes confirmed that they will be writing a response within the six-week timeframe and gave an excuse for why the response to the 2016 report was so delayed (the reply came on 13 Feb 2018), saying that it "was delayed for various reasons, including the General Election and ministerial changes."
4 June 2018: HC 146834 (Mental Health Services: Detention Centres)
Luciana Berger (Labour) asked how much funding the Department of Health has spent on commissioning mental health services to treat patients in detention centres in each year since 2014. Jackie Doyle-Price, the Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care, replied that while the NHS England is responsible for commissioning all health services in detention it "does not hold the information in the format requested."
4 June 2018: HC 146830 (Detainees: Harassment)
Luciana Berger (Labour) asked what steps the Home Office is taking to ensure that there is a zero tolerance approach to sexual assault and harassment by staff of detainees in detention centres. Minister for Immigration Caroline Nokes replied that all complaints made by detainees are investigated by the relevant supplier in accordance with 2015 DSO on 'Handling Complaints'. Detainees can also escalate their complaint to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. "Any allegations of serious misconduct made by a detainee against staff are also referred to the Home Office Professional Standards Unit (PSU) for investigation. Where a detainee, or someone on behalf of a detainee, alleges that a member of staff has committed an offence against them the police will automatically be notified, even if the detainee does not wish the matter to be reported or to make a formal complaint."
4 June 2018: HC 147301 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Harriet Harman (Labour) asked the Home Secretary how many residents have been detained in immigration detention centres with issues outstanding from the constituency of Camberwell and Peckham and the London Borough of Southwark in each of the last seven years. Minister for Immigration Caroline Nokes said that Home Office data is not broken down by Parliamentary constituency or metropolitan borough and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
4 June 2018: HC 147455 (Immigrants: Detainees)
Stephen Doughty (Labour) asked about Home Office policy on access to internet, email, social media, landline telephone, mobile telephone and Skype for detainees at UK immigration detention centres. Caroline Nokes replied that the Detention Centre Rules and published Detention Service Orders set out the requirements for availability and access to telephones, the internet and email. She said "Detainees are able to retain their own mobile telephones throughout their detention, provided their handset has no recording facility and/or access to the internet. Where a detainee’s handset does not comply with these restrictions they are provided with a suitable handset by the immigration removal centre supplier" She also said that "It is a contractual requirement that all immigration removal centres provide detainees with reasonable and regulated access to the internet and IT facilities." and that "The Home Office is undertaking an initial scoping exercise on the use of Skype for detainee contact with families abroad."
