Manston: Migrant centre issues improving but crisis not over, say MPs

MPs from the Home Affairs Committee visited the Manston site on Tuesday

Overcrowding at a migrant centre in Kent has eased in recent days, but the "crisis is not over", the head of the Home Affairs Committee of MPs has said.

Dame Diana Johnson says the Manston immigration processing site is back to a safe occupancy level of 1,600 people.

It had reached highs of 4,000 last week - more than double its capacity.

But Labour's Dame Diana said questions remain over "the legality of the home secretary's decision to detain people at the site for longer than 24 hours".

The government said Suella Braverman has taken "urgent decisions" to alleviate issues at Manston by sourcing alternative accommodation.

Migrants are meant to be held there for short periods of time while undergoing security and identity checks.

They are then supposed to be moved into the Home Office's asylum accommodation system. But some people have been held for longer periods of time because of an apparent lack of alternative accommodation - and concerns have been raised over conditions.

According to the Ministry of Defence, only one boat carrying 46 migrants has been detected crossing the English Channel since last Monday.

On Tuesday the Home Affairs Committee - made up of MPs from several parties - visited Manston and praised staff for making "valiant efforts" at trying to improve conditions for detainees.

But, Dame Diana warned "the crisis is not over".

"We encountered families who had been sleeping on mats on the floor for weeks," she added.

"The Home Office has been running to keep up with this escalating crisis, rather than warding it off at the outset through planning and preparation."

On Tuesday, one migrant tried to speak with the press and told reporters he had been at Manston for 30 days.

The man shouted "help" repeatedly and was then pinned against a fence by four or five staff members before being dragged away from the cameras, according to the PA news agency.

• Why are there problems at Manston migrant centre?

• What's behind the migrant backlog?

Last Wednesday, one migrant told the BBC that conditions at Manston were like living in a zoo.

He described being forced to sleep on the floor, and being prevented from going to the toilet, taking a shower or going outside for exercise.

Dame Diana called on the home secretary to deal with a backlog in the asylum system in order to keep numbers down.

A Home Office spokesman earlier insisted Manston remains resourced and equipped to process people securely while alternative accommodation is found.

In response to Dame Diana's remarks he added: "The welfare of those in our care is of the utmost importance.

"We have acted quickly to improve the situation on the ground including bolstering the 24/7 medical facilities already on site, extra bedding and improved catering facilities, as well as providing more activities to support migrant welfare, including for children."

Meanwhile, lawyers for two councils have urged the High Court to block the Home Office's contractors from using large hotels to house asylum seekers.

Ipswich Borough Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council say the hotels in their patches are being unlawfully converted into asylum seeker hostels and they want them stopped by court injunctions.