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Increase in immigration removal centre places

19/05/2008

The UK Border Agency has today announced a considerable increase in the number of immigration removal centre places.

The Home Office released a statement setting out plans for up to 60 per cent more detention spaces.

The extra places will number between 1,300 and 1,500, which the government claims will help the Border Agency increase the removal of illegal immigrants.

The Home Office also said that planning applications would be registered at two possible new sites at Bicester, Oxfordshire and Yarls Wood in Bedfordshire.

And a new centre could be up and running within two years, coming soon after the new centre at Brook House, near Gatwick Airport, which will include more than 420 beds when it opens next year.

Immigration minister Liam Byrne said: "We now remove an immigration offender every eight minutes - but my target is to remove more, and remove them faster.

"We have increased illegal working operations by 40 per cent and last year we deported 80 per cent more foreign criminals. Even though asylum claims are at a 14-year low, we are removing more failed asylum seekers each year. That means we need more detention space.

"Although stronger border security demands these controls, I know local communities will have concerns. My commitment is to listen to these personally."

Last year, the Border Agency removed 4,200 foreign national prisoners and deported 63,140 illegal migrants from the UK.

Mr Byrne added: "We are currently undertaking the biggest shake-up of our immigration system for 40 years. Alongside the expansion of our detention estate, we are making it harder than ever for people to cross into the UK illegally.

"Tighter borders are already illustrated by the fingerprinting of every visa applicant wishing to travel to the UK, while ID cards for foreign nationals will lock people to one identity. We are also cracking down on illegal working with more enforcement raids than ever before."