Anti-torture Committee publishes report of visit to UK carried out in November 2022
On the 29th of June, the Council of Europe's anti-torture committee published the report on its visit to the UK in November 2022 to examine the treatment of migrants and asylum seekers arriving by small boat after crossing the English Channel.
You can download the 24-page report here. The UK's response to the report is here.
The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) visited Western Jet Foil (WJF), Manston short-term holding facility (STHF), and the Kent Intake Unit (KIU) in Dover.
The report highlights that the CPT delegation received excellent cooperation overall from the UK authorities both prior to and during the visit.
Overcrowded conditions at Manston was the main concern of the CPT. While only 20 asylum seekers were being held at the facility when the CPT visited the site at the end of November, more than 4,000 people had been held there in the preceding weeks in cramped and unsanitary conditions.
According to the CPT, many migrants held at Manston may have been exposed to inhuman and degrading treatment.
The report states: "The CPT … notes that, in its view, during the latter half of October 2022 and the beginning of November 2022 when Manston STHF was severely overcrowded, the cumulation of prolonged detention in very poor conditions may have resulted in many persons held at Manston STHF having been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment."
Based on its observations, the CPT recommends that the occupancy levels should be reduced in the marquees used at Manston to avoid overcrowding.
The length of detention at Manston was also a concern. Many people were held unlawfully at the short-term holding facility during the period of increased small boat arrivals from August to November 2022.
The CPT explains: "The legislation requires that any detention beyond 24 hours is subject to a detention review at the appropriate level and that a written decision on the reasons for the detention is to be provided to the person concerned. … However, this was not done at times of mass arrivals and many persons were subsequently held unlawfully."
Some migrants and asylum seekers were held at the site for weeks.
The report notes: "In relation to the maximum period of detention recorded at Manston STHF from August 2022 onwards, Home Office staff admitted that people had been held in excess of 30 days (including families). Among the files examined by the delegation there were in fact several cases of prolonged detention amounting in total to 43, 37 and 25 days and many more in excess of four days. Clearly, the UK authorities need to ensure that the legal provisions and safeguards surrounding the deprivation of liberty of persons detained at Manston STHF are applied in practice."
Migrants held at Manston had the right to access to a lawyer, but the CPT delegation said it could not obtain information or statistics confirming the number of migrants who had availed themselves of that right. In addition, Home Office staff at Manston could not provide statistics to the CPT concerning migrants who had challenged their decision on detention in court.
The CPT's report also questions the appropriateness of methods used by staff at Manston to calm down migrants exhibiting agitation or challenging behaviour. At the end of the visit, the CPT delegation requested that the method used, namely locking migrants in a van for several hours, should be withdrawn from service and replaced by an alternative arrangement.
The report explains the method used at Manston: "Migrants displaying a higher level of agitation and challenging behaviour would, in principle, be handcuffed and placed in a rear secure area of an Immigration Enforcement van until they calmed down. The small box-like fenced in area (approximately 3m²) was equipped with a bench seat and a seat belt, with an opaque windowpane providing limited access to natural light. The records did not always indicate the exact duration of the segregation measure but in the 14 recorded measures examined they ranged from two to 20 hours. It was also unclear whether migrants placed in the van were under constant or regular supervision, and staff could not confirm the nature of the supervision. In two documented cases, migrants placed in the van had attempted to strangulate themselves with the seatbelt which indicated that the supervision was not constant. For example, in one of the two cases of attempted self-strangulation, there was an entry in the logbook referring to the need for constant visual supervision of the migrant in question."
In its response to the CPT, the UK Government said the cell vans at Manston were no longer being used.
Some concerns were raised by the CPT over the treatment of unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) held at Kent Intake Unit. The report notes: "At the time of the visit, the facility was in a good state of repair and hygiene and was accommodating five UASCs. However, it was not suitable for holding more than 25 UASCs for a few hours pending their assessment and, given the lack of sleeping platforms and beds, not for overnight stays. The detention registers showed that it was not uncommon for UASCs to spend a night or even several days in overcrowded conditions at KIU."
The CPT did note that new facilities were being built at Kent Intake Unit 2 which were much improved. The Home Office notes that the new KIU2 is now fully operational.
Conditions at Western Jet Foil were adequate, though the CPT found excessive stays at the site during busy periods: "At the time of the visit, the new WJF facility was in the process of being upgraded and a heated marquee, with wooden benches and changing facilities, with a capacity to hold 600 persons was being installed. Material conditions were satisfactory for short stays in the marquee, and the sanitary facilities (showers and toilets) and changing areas provided the necessary level of privacy and were in a good state of repair. …In principle, the WJF provided good conditions for disembarking migrants in the initial stages of their detention after a difficult journey, provided it did not last longer than a few hours. However, the personal case-processing files examined by the delegation at Manston STHF showed that during the periods of peak arrivals in September and October 2022, it was not infrequent for migrants to stay overnight or longer at WJF before being transferred to Manston STHF."
The CPT report also highlights the need to improve the coordination and quality control of the provision of healthcare, to reinforce medical confidentiality and to ensure that all migrants detained for more than 24 hours are subject to a mandatory medical screening.