Detention of children at immigration ‘prisons’ attacked by MPs

By Tracy Mcveigh

Too many children are being detained for too long and at too great a cost to the taxpayer in UK immigration centres that are “essentially prisons”, according to a cross-party group of MPs.

In a report released today, the home affairs select committee said statistics suggested that about 1,000 children a year were held in secure immigration centres while they and their families awaited removal from the UK, but it was “troubling” that no one was able to give an exact number held or an overview of their welfare. The committee is calling for reform of the asylum process to speed it up.

Children spend an average of more than a fortnight in detention centres, with longer stays of up to 61 days not uncommon. Some children are released and re-detained.

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