Torture victims wrongly detained by Home Office, damning report reveals

Watchdog says unevidenced claims migrants abusing system ‘infecting response’ to vulnerable people

A view of people thought to be migrants inside the Manston immigration short-term holding facility (PA)

Victims of torture and trafficking are being wrongly detained by the Home Office, a damning report has found.

An inspection of immigration detention centres found that legally-required checks on whether migrants have mental or physical health issues that make imprisonment unsafe were not being properly carried out.

David Neal, the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration (ICIBI), said that unevidenced claims that migrants were “abusing the system” to secure their release were stopping vulnerable people getting support.