Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has for the future of Yarls Wood immigration removal centre and the detention of women under immigration powers there.

The immigration removal estate is kept under ongoing review to ensure that the Home Office has sufficient capacity, in the right places and that it provides value for money.

In August, the pre-existing Short-Term Holding Facility (STHF) at Yarl’s Wood, in which clandestine entrants may be held by UK Visas and Immigration for a short time to resolve their position before being dispersed through appropriate routes, was temporarily expanded to incorporate the whole site. At this time Yarl’s Wood was operated solely in accordance with the STHF Rules 2018.

In light of changing demands in the immigration removal estate and in line with business recovery, we have now transitioned part of the Yarl’s Wood site back to an immigration removal centre for women.

In order to meet operational needs and demands, we will continue to operate the immigration removal estate, including Yarl’s Wood, in a flexible manner and in line with the STHF Rules 2018 and the Detention Centre Rules 2001, as appropriate.