Cost of payouts to unlawfully detained migrants revealed
The highest annual sum over the last five years was £5 million.
The Home Office has paid out more than £21 million to migrants they have unlawfully detained, new figures reveal.
Labour’s shadow immigration minister Afzal Khan said the payouts raised “serious questions” about decision-making at the department.
The figures, unearthed by Tory former minister Andrew Mitchell in a written question to the department, relate to payments made over the past five years and total £21.2 million.
Mr Khan told the Press Association: “This Tory Government’s indefinite detention policy is not only cruel but costs hundreds of millions of pounds.
“The UK is the only country in Europe to have no time limit on detention, yet the majority of detainees are actually released into the community.
“This raises serious questions about how the chaotic Home Office makes its decisions on who to detain in the first place.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “Detention is an important part of our immigration system, helping to ensure that those with no right to remain in the UK are returned to their home country if they will not leave voluntarily.
“Decisions to detain or maintain detention are taken after careful consideration, and we are committed to treating all detainees with dignity and respect.
“The fact that a court may subsequently rule that an individual has been unlawfully detained does not necessarily mean the original decision was taken in bad faith.
“The court’s findings may only relate to part of the detention.”
The Government has said that these reforms will lead to a reduction in the number of detainees and the length of time they spend in detention before removal.
