Immigration detention centre officially reopens

The Home Office has confirmed the official reopening of an immigration detention facility.

The first detainees arrived at Campsfield Immigration Removal Centre, near Kidlington in Oxfordshire, on Wednesday and Thursday.

The centre was shut in 2018 after years of problems, including riots, escapes and complaints about conditions.

Protesters who gathered as the first detainees arrived described the move as a "terrible step backwards" but the government said Campsfield would "speed up enforced removals of foreign national offenders and illegal migrants".

The plan has also been opposed by MPs, residents and charities, as well as Oxford City Council.

The Home Office said Campsfield had undergone a £70m refurbishment and was "redeveloped to high security standards".

It has about 160 bed spaces, which will eventually be expanded to 400.

The government said detainees were being escorted there "either directly from prison, a short-term holding facility after their illegal entry to the UK or following enforcement action such as illegal working arrests".

"They will comprise of foreign national criminals, immigration offenders, illegal small boats arrivals and failed asylum seekers," it said.

The site's operator Mitie was given a six-year contract to run the centre.

Alex Norris, minister for border security and asylum, said Campsfield was the "first step in a major expansion of secure detention facilities, giving us the capacity to remove thousands more foreign criminals and illegal migrants quickly".

"This is about fairness to those who play by the rules and delivering on our pledge to secure our borders, enforce the rules and protect the British public," he said.

But Calum Miller, MP for Bicester and Woodstock, told the BBC: "This feels like part of that project by the government that is intended to make people feel that they're doing something about asylum, but not necessarily demonstrating that this actually is the right way to do it, or that it's appropriate to significantly expand a facility that's right next to housing and the Oxford technology park."

In a statement, Asylum Welcome joint CEO Dr Hari Reed said: "As the first detainees arrive at Campsfield, we feel deeply sorry that people are once again being locked up in a system that causes profound harm.

"There is no such thing as a humane immigration detention centre."

The Home Office said Campsfield was the first of several new detention facilities planned, including Haslar in Gosport, Hampshire, which closed in 2015.

It said the reopening of Campsfield marked a "clear signal of intent that this government will do whatever it takes to protect the British public and maintain the integrity of our immigration system".