Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answers of 14 July 2022, 26 September 2022 and 9 February 2023 to Questions 32512, 53359 and 138399 on Derwentside Immigration Removal Centre (IRC): Legal Profession, what assessment she has made of the reason for the increase in the number of in-person legal visits at Derwentside IRC between 22 and 30 September 2022 compared with the number between 1 July and 21 September 2022.

The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) operates free legal advice surgeries in immigration removal centres (IRCs) in England under the Detained Duty Advice Scheme (DDAS). Individuals who are detained are entitled to receive up to 30 minutes of advice regardless of financial eligibility or the merits of their case. There is no restriction on the number of surgeries an individual may attend. If an individual who is detained requires substantive advice on a matter which is in scope of legal aid, full legal advice can be provided if the statutory legal aid means and merits criteria are met.

Individuals detained in IRCs can also access privately commissioned legal advice, including legally aided advice provided through means other than the DDAS.

Access to DDAS legal advice across the immigration removal estate is currently facilitated through both remote means (by telephone and video conferencing) and in-person visits on request. The volume of requests for in-person appointments may vary, with more requests at Derwentside IRC having been made at certain times than at others, and it is currently a matter for the detained individual to decide the means by which their appointment is facilitated.

Previously released data was provisional management information, which is not assured to the standard of Official Statistics and is subject to change. We are working with the LAA to better understand the data.