Kate Osamor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many detainees were threatened with the Kingfisher Isolation Unit as a result of peaceful protest activities in conjunction with the demonstration outside Yarl’s Wood Immigration Removal Centre on 10 September 2016.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Kingfisher Unit at Yarl’s Wood is managed by Serco, the service provider, in accordance with Rules 40 (removal from association) and 42 (temporary confinement) of the Detention Centre Rules 2001. Detainees may only be separated from others for reasons of safety, either their own or for others, for security reasons or when an individual is being refractory or violent. There is no provision in the Rules for separation to be used as punishment.

Provisional management information from Serco shows that no detainees were re-located to Kingfisher Unit on either 10 or 11 September. There is no record of any complaints having been made by detainees alleging that they have been threatened with placement on Kingfisher Unit in connection with the demonstration on 10 September.

Detainee Custody Officers must not threaten detainees in order to manage their behaviour but may advise detainees that they may be separated if their behaviour is judged to risk compromising the safety and security of the centre, themselves or others.