PRESS RELEASE - Outcry Against Immigration Detention Expansion

PRESS RELEASE: Re-opening of Haslar and Campsfield IRCs sparks public fury amidst fresh reports of failures reported by Gatwick IRC's IMB monitors.         

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For further information, including arranging an interview regarding this, please contact enquiries@aviddetention.org.uk

• ‍Read the embargoed public statement here.‍
• 'We urge you to abandon these plans.' says the signatories regarding the recently announced plans to expand immigration detention

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A coalition of local residents(Gosport and Oxford), human rights organisations, academics, and advocates for people in detention have issued a powerful joint statement to The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, Home Secretary, opposing the plans to re-open Haslar and Campsfield Immigration Removal Centres (IRCs). The statement, co-ordinated by AVID, Keep Campsfield Closed and Border Criminologies, received 82 signatures, representing 50 organisations.

The coalition condemns these plans as a regressive step that contradicts the principles of fairness, humanity, and justice.

Bill MacKeith, resident at Oxford and organiser at Coalition to Keep Campsfield Closed, said: 

"Local opposition is clear, from parish to district to county council, and MPs. We know the awful effects of immigration detention. This is a failed policy, profiteering from misery, and alternatives exist."

This statement was issued just as the Gatwick Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) released its latest report. The report raises serious concerns about ongoing failures in safeguarding and the harmful effects of detention. This is now the third scrutiny report that the new government has had to grapple with since taking office just over 50 days ago, each one underscoring the deep-rooted problems within the UK’s immigration detention system.

Miranda Reilly, Co-Director of AVID, said: ‍

"It is deeply troubling that the UK government plans to continue with previously held plans to re-open Campsfield House and Haslar IRCs in the face of years of evidence of the harm caused by detention - not least within these same centres. It should give pause for thought as to what further evidence is needed. Human conscience should be enough to tell us that the practice of detention - a practice which requires the use of nets to mitigate the risk of suicide and which legitimises the use of force - is wrong. This is why we are asking the Home Secretary to speak directly with people who have had experience of detention. We believe that it is necessary to reconnect to our shared humanity to confront a system which functions by isolating people from communities and human connection."

The joint statement, signed by a wide range of organisations and individuals, outlines several urgent demands:

• Reduce the Detention Estate: Immediately reduce detention facilities and cessation of using detention for administrative purposes, especially for vulnerable individuals.
• Act on Brook House Inquiry Findings: Implement all recommendations from the Brook House Inquiry to address and prevent systemic abuse.
• Uphold the Values of Fairness and Humanity: Align immigration policies with principles of fairness, humanity, openness, diversity and inclusion, as recommended by the Windrush review
• Prioritise Community-Based Alternatives: Shift resources to support systems that provide humane, effective solutions without resorting to detention.
• Incorporate Lived Experience: Ensure that future policy decisions are guided by the voices of those who have experienced detention first-hand.

The coalition is calling on the Home Secretary to abandon the plans to expand the detention estate and engage in a meaningful dialogue with those affected by these policies. The statement ends with a clear and straightforward ask: If you cannot meet our other critical demands, at the very least, speak to those who have experienced detention. Their voices should be the compass guiding any decisions about this deeply flawed system.

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Gee Manoharan, Co-Director of AVID and a survivor of immigration detention, delivers a blunt warning:

"The decision to reopen Haslar and Campsfield IRCs is not only a profound misstep but an outright betrayal of human dignity. As someone who has endured the brutal reality of immigration detention, I am appalled. The newly released IMB report on Gatwick IRC reveals that the deep-seated abuses and failures we’ve been fighting against are still rampant. Instead of resurrecting these archaic and brutal institutions, the government must urgently pivot to community-based solutions that honour our values of humanity and justice. This is not just about policy; it's about the real lives devastated by this cruel system."

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ENDS

‍For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Gee Manoharan
Co-Director
Association of Visitors to Immigration Detainees (AVID)
enquiries@aviddetention.org.uk