§ Mr. Peter DuncanTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average number of children resident at Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre has been during the last 12 months. [131556]
§ Beverley HughesInformation on the average number of children resident in Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre during the last 12 months and the average length of time for which detainees were held is not yet available in the form requested and could be obtained only by examination of individual case-files at disproportionate cost.
Minors are detained only in two limited circumstances: first, as part of a family group whose detention is considered appropriate; second, when unaccompanied, while alternative care arrangements are made and normally just overnight. While the detention of families with children is very regrettable, it nevertheless remains necessary in appropriate cases in order to maintain an effective immigration control and to tackle abuses of the asylum system.