Immigration centre expansion plans progress

Plans to more than double the capacity of an immigration removal centre have been submitted to the Planning Inspectorate.

Campsfield Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) near Kidlington, Oxford, reopened in December after it was shut in 2018 following years of problems, including riots, escapes and complaints about conditions.

The Home Office is proposing to increase the centre's capacity from 160 bed spaces to 400, as well as the conversion of existing buildings.

Calum Miller, MP for Bicester and Woodstock, said he was disappointed it had decided to "bypass local planning" and the "voice of local people". The Home Office declined a BBC request to comment.

It previously said Campsfield had undergone a £70m refurbishment and was "redeveloped to high security standards".

The centre has been subject to opposition from MPs, residents and charities over the years, with campaigners describing it as an "appalling" place.

Protesters who gathered as the first detainees arrived in December described the move as a "terrible step backwards".

In response, the government said it would "speed up enforced removals of foreign national offenders and illegal migrants".

The plans are being processed under the Crown Development route, which is a planning procedure that takes the decision out of the hands of Cherwell District Council.

The proposals also include centralised catering and healthcare, multi-faith space, leisure and education facilities.

A planning document states that new-build development within the site is "necessary to increase capacity and to provide improved accommodation and associated facilities in a form better aligned with current Home Office operational requirements".

It adds that the proposed development will result in a number of "key planning benefits", including meeting the capacity of the government's immigration enforcement requirements.

Miller said the Crown Development route had only been used twice before and questioned whether the expansion met the criteria for such an exceptional process.

He said he was disappointed the Home Office had decided to "bypass local planning, the voice of local people, and take a decision on such a big and controversial project at the national level".

"I'm worried that the government is using it as a way to avoid local scrutiny," he said.

Miller said Campsfield had "a very dark and disturbing history" and that local people wanted any expanded operation to learn from that past.

He said he had obtained information that there was "considerable capacity elsewhere in the detention estate" and that the government had not adequately explained why expanding Campsfield specifically was necessary.

A consultation allowing people to have their say on the plans is open until 24 July.

The Planning Inspectorate said written representations will be considered by the inspectors before a decision is made on the application.