§ Annabelle EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the Committee of Visiting at Dungavel was arranged; who was appointed to sit upon the Committee; what criteria are used in deciding who can act as a visitor; and what the total cost was for the conversion of Dungavel from a prison to a detention centre. [53217]
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§ Angela EagleApplications to be considered for appointment to the Dungavel House Visiting Committee were invited in an advert placed in the local press on 10 August 2001. Eleven individuals were appointed to the committee on 27 March 2002. Successful candidates were selected on the basis of the experience and abilities they could bring to the committee and to ensure a reasonably balanced membership. It is not the practice to publish the names of visiting committee members and we have no plans to change this policy.
The total cost of converting Dungavel House to an immigration removal centre is expected to be in the region of £3.5 million.