Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether any recent changes have been made to the reception criteria at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre.

The immigration removal estate is kept under ongoing review to ensure that the Home Office has sufficient capacity to detain for the purposes of removal, to protect the public and to provide value for money.

In order to support the management of the arrival of migrants, we have temporarily accommodated people under the provisions of the Short-term Holding Facilities (STHF) Rules 2018, in a small number of immigration removal centres (IRCs) including Tinsley House.

The normal operational capacity for Tinsley House IRC was increased on a temporary basis over the autumn in response to these changes. This temporary increase has now been removed and the centre has reverted to an operating capacity of 162.

Reception criteria at Brook House IRC is managed in line with the published Detention Services Order 03/2016 ‘Consideration of Detainee Placement in the Detention Estate’.