Migrants to be kept longer at Manston

The government has given itself powers to hold migrants for longer periods at the Manston processing centre in Kent.

It comes after overcrowding at the site this autumn led to some migrants being kept longer than the 24-hour legal limit.

Under new rules, people can be kept there for up to four days if offered more extensive facilities.

The Home Office said this would give staff longer to process arrivals and conduct checks during busy periods.

An official inspection of the centre in July found the length of detention was “far too long” and “often” longer than the 24-hour period.

The site, a former RAF base, had been intended to hold up to 1,600 people, but there were around 4,000 migrants at one point in late October.

Manston is a non-residential centre with limited facilities, where people are meant to be kept only for short periods before being moved into more permanent accommodation, usually a hotel.

Opened as a processing centre in February, it has struggled to cope with the current 24-hour timeframe that applies to such sites.

Now a legal tweak will allow detention for up to 96 hours – a period that can be extended further by the home secretary in “exceptional circumstances”.

Pressure on the site has increased as the year has gone on, with the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats rising to record levels.

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