Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to investigate and review working practices where individuals are detained and processed for deportation despite having lodged a formal appeal of their recent immigration status decision.

We make every effort to ensure that a foreign national offenders removal by deportation coincides, as far as possible, with their release from prison on completion of sentence. Those who have no right to remain in the UK and do not return home voluntarily should be in no doubt of our determination to remove them.

Regular reviews of detention will consider if it remains appropriate and will take account of whether an appeal is a barrier to removal, or it is non-suspensive. The lodging of a suspensive appeal, or other legal proceedings that need to be resolved before removal can proceed will not lead to automatic release in such circumstances: there may be other grounds justifying a person’s continued detention, for example a risk of absconding, risk of harm to the public or the person’s removal may still legitimately be considered imminent if the appeal or other proceedings are likely to be resolved reasonably quickly.

Foreign national offenders held in detention have the option to apply to an independent immigration judge for bail at any point.

Our New Plan for Immigration will make it easier to deport foreign criminals with no right to be in the UK and keep our citizens safe.