Sarah Teather – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Teather on 2014-03-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his plans are for HMP The Verne.

Jeremy Wright

HM Prison The Verne started taking immigration detainees as scheduled from 24 March 2014. The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) will retain The Verne as a prison in the short term but its population will comprise immigration detainees as planned with the Home Office.

NOMS intends to review the designation of The Verne later this year, with the intention of completing the re-designation to an immigration removal centre by the end of September 2014.

All foreign national offenders (FNOs) sentenced to custody are referred to the Home Office for them to consider deportation at the earliest possible opportunity.

The Ministry of Justice and the Home Office are committed to working together to expedite the removal of foreign criminals. NOMS will always supply sufficient prison places for those committed by the courts.