Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the contribution of 26 March 2015 by the then Parliamentary under Secretary of State, on Immigration: Detention, Official Report, House of Lords, column 1587, what recent assessment she has made of changes in the number of people held in immigration removal centres; and what steps she is taking to reduce growth in such numbers.

Home Office published statistics show that as at 30 June 2015, 3418 people were in detention, an increase on the number recorded at the end of June 2014 (3,079). This data is available online https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2015/detention.

Capacity of the detention estate is kept under constant review. Decisions will continue to be made according to operational priorities. Haslar Immigration Removal Centre was transferred back to the National Offender Management Service in April 2015, reducing the overall detention estate capacity.

On 9 February the Home Secretary announced an independent review of detainee welfare in immigration detention, led by Stephen Shaw. The report is expected in the autumn and the Government will publish the report by laying it before Parliament, alongside the Government’s response to the recommendations.