Demolition at migrant centre could see it reopen

The government hope the proposal will make the centre "fit for purpose when it reopens"

Plans have been submitted to demolish buildings at an immigration removal centre (IRC) which the government intends to reopen.

The Home Office plans to demolish two buildings at the Haslar centre in Gosport, Hampshire, which are "no longer fit for purpose".

The government will use the centre to house 600 men before they are removed from the UK.

If demolition is approved, the centre could reopen at the end of the year.

Haslar IRC was closed in 2015 under the coalition government, following a parliamentary review which highlighted immigration detention as "expensive and damaging to detainees".

In September last year, the Home Office unveiled plans to reopen the Gosport centre.

The plans, submitted to Gosport Borough Council by Cushman and Wakefield, seek to demolish buildings which it says are "in poor condition", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The application says the site is "currently being refurbished in order that it is fit for purpose when it reopens as an IRC".