Parliamentary activity

Answering body: Home Office

The Government is today publishing its response to the Brook House Inquiry. The Government is grateful to the Chair of the Brook House Inquiry (BHI), Kate Eves, for her review and welcomes this important contribution to ensuring the safety and welfare of those in detention. The response has been laid before Parliament as a Command Paper (CP 1041) and copies are available in the Vote Office and on gov.uk.

This inquiry, in which the Home Office was a core participant, was in response to an investigative current affairs documentary broadcast in September 2017, which included covert footage of abuse of detained people at Brook House immigration removal centre (IRC) by a small number of contracted service provider staff. The inquiry was established on 5 November 2019 and published its report on 19 September 2023. The inquiry formally closed on 31 January 2024.

The aim of the inquiry was to establish the facts of what took place and ensure that lessons were learnt to prevent those shocking events happening again. The Government expects the highest standards from contracted service providers.

The Government wishes to highlight the significant improvements that have been made since 2017 to uphold the welfare and dignity of those detained across the estate including strengthening safeguards, promoting a culture of transparency and improving the oversight of contractors’ performance. The Government is confident the measures taken so far in responding to the BHI have gone a long way to addressing many of the key concerns raised, and will continue to reflect on the findings from the Inquiry ensuring that they are fully embedded into the development and implementation of new and emerging policy initiatives.

Answering body: Home Office

My rt hon Friend the Minister of State for Countering Illegal Migration (Michael Tomlinson) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:

The Government is today publishing its response to the Brook House Inquiry. The Government is grateful to the Chair of the Brook House Inquiry (BHI), Kate Eves, for her review and welcomes this important contribution to ensuring the safety and welfare of those in detention. The response has been laid before Parliament as a Command Paper (CP 1041) and copies are available in the Vote Office and on gov.uk.

This inquiry, in which the Home Office was a core participant, was in response to an investigative current affairs documentary broadcast in September 2017, which included covert footage of abuse of detained people at Brook House immigration removal centre (IRC) by a small number of contracted service provider staff. The inquiry was established on 5 November 2019 and published its report on 19 September 2023. The inquiry formally closed on 31 January 2024.

The aim of the inquiry was to establish the facts of what took place and ensure that lessons were learnt to prevent those shocking events happening again. The Government expects the highest standards from contracted service providers.

The Government wishes to highlight the significant improvements that have been made since 2017 to uphold the welfare and dignity of those detained across the estate including strengthening safeguards, promoting a culture of transparency and improving the oversight of contractors’ performance. The Government is confident the measures taken so far in responding to the BHI have gone a long way to addressing many of the key concerns raised, and will continue to reflect on the findings from the Inquiry ensuring that they are fully embedded into the development and implementation of new and emerging policy initiatives.

Answering body: Home Office

My rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department (Suella Braverman) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:

Today the independent Inquiry into the mistreatment of individuals who were detained at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) between 1 April 2017 and 31 August 2017, as shown in the BBC Panorama programme “Under-Cover: Britain’s Immigration Secrets” has published its report.

The report can be found on the Brook House Inquiry website from noon today.

The Report sets out failings in both oversight and governance to protect the welfare of detained individuals within Brook House IRC during this period.

The Government takes the welfare and safety of those we detain very seriously and has made significant improvements to immigration detention since the dates covered by the Inquiry.

I would like to thank Kate Eves and the Inquiry Team for their work to establish the facts of what happened at Brook House IRC, to identify learning and to make recommendations that will help to prevent a recurrence of such events.

We will carefully consider the findings of this Inquiry in its detailed report, including the recommendations in relation to the management of the immigration detention estate and the welfare of detained individuals.

I have today laid the Inquiry’s report before the House, and it will also be published on www.gov.uk.

Answering body: Home Office

Today the independent Inquiry into the mistreatment of individuals who were detained at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) between 1 April 2017 and 31 August 2017, as shown in the BBC Panorama programme “Under-Cover: Britain’s Immigration Secrets” has published its report.

The report can be found on the Brook House Inquiry website from noon today.

The Report sets out failings in both oversight and governance to protect the welfare of detained individuals within Brook House IRC during this period.

The Government takes the welfare and safety of those we detain very seriously and has made significant improvements to immigration detention since the dates covered by the Inquiry.

I would like to thank Kate Eves and the Inquiry Team for their work to establish the facts of what happened at Brook House IRC, to identify learning and to make recommendations that will help to prevent a recurrence of such events.

We will carefully consider the findings of this Inquiry in its detailed report, including the recommendations in relation to the management of the immigration detention estate and the welfare of detained individuals.

I have today laid the Inquiry’s report before the House, and it will also be published on www.gov.uk.