Public Law Solicitors

We were pleased to see that Baroness Hamwee raised the issue of immigration detainees working for £1 an hour in immigration removal centres (IRCs) in the House of Lords. This follows the recent Guardian article that reported on our group litigation challenging this.

It is a long over-looked scandal that immigration detainees are prevented from being paid more than £1 per hour by Home Office policy. Many of our clients have long felt exploited by this pay regime when they require the money in order to buy phone credit and essentials from the detention shop. These detainees are working up to 30 hours per week as cleaners, kitchen assistants and even barbers. Their work is essential to the running of detention centres.

We at Duncan Lewis Solicitors have been preparing a legal case to challenge the government’s policy and practice. We are seeking to argue that the decision to set pay at £1 an hour is irrational and that there is no justification for prohibiting removal centres from paying more than this basic rate. We are further arguing that this policy is discriminatory and in breach of EU law in relation to EU nationals in detention.

The response in the House of Lords by Baroness Williams shows that the government has no response to why a pay rate of £1 per hour is set. Her response that work is voluntary and relieves boredom fundamentally misses the point. There is no objection to detainees being given the right to work in removal centres and our clients welcome the opportunity to spend their time carrying out useful work. However, they wish to be adequately remunerated for such work and want the opportunity of a pay rise as any worker in this country deserves.

Detainees at immigration removal centres are not prisoners and even the Home Office admit the purpose of paid work is not rehabilitative. It is our view that £1 per hour is a derisory reward for work which would otherwise have to be performed by outside staff earning the national minimum wage.

We welcome the fact that, as a direct result of the threat of litigation from Duncan Lewis, the Home Office have agreed for a full review of this policy, which will include a review of pay rates and whether a maximum wage should be maintained. We have been informed that this review will take place by September 2017. The Home Office has been clearly told that if this review does not take place by the end of September or if the outcome of this review is not satisfactory to our clients, we will advise them to issue proceedings in the High Court accordingly.

Our clients are detained at various IRCs throughout the country, including Harmondsworth, Yarl’s Wood, Brook House and Campsfield House.

Our legal team consists of Phillip Armitage, Oscar Frandsen and Toufique Hossain. Counsel involved is Hugh Southey QC and Sarah Hannet of Matrix Chambers.