“State sanctioned abuse” has taken place Yarl’s Wood, says Cooper

Yvette Cooper, the Shadow Home Secretary, has asked an urgent question in the Commons about abuse allegations at Yarl’s Wood.

Yarl’s Wood is an immigration detention centre that opened in 2001. Ever since then guards (who come from private company Serco, which runs the facilitiy) are have faced serious accusations that there has been ongoing mistreatment of the people detained in the facility. This includes reports of sexual abuse and degrading treatment.

On Monday, Channel 4 aired a documentary which had undercover footage from inside Yarl’s Wood.

The Government have not set up an independent inquiry into these allegations, despite Labour calling on them to do so and in November, the Coalition renewed Serco’s contract.

Cooper, attacked the treatment of women at Yarl’s Wood in the Commons today and criticised Theresa May, Home Secretary, for the way she has handled this situation:

“Women in Yarl’s Wood are detained on the instruction of the Home Office. The Home Secretary is responsible for ensuring they are treated humanely.

There has been a history of problems at Yarl’s Wood going back many years but we were told those had been addressed. 

Yet in September 2013, it was reported that women at Yarl’s Wood had been sexually assaulted by Serco guards who the Home Secretary contracted to manage the centre.
 
I called on her then to set up an independent inquiry.
 
In March 2014 a woman died at Yarl’s Wood, I asked an urgent question in this House – and called on the Home Secretary again to set up an independent inquiry into the abuse. She didn’t, and didn’t come to the House.
 
In May 2014 more allegations came out that another vulnerable woman was sexually assaulted, that a woman who poured boiling water over herself was left for hours in a state of shock.

Again I called on the Home Secretary to set up an independent inquiry.
And again, I called on her to do so at the end of last year.Yet the Home Secretary has failed repeatedly to do so.
 
Refused to establish an independent inquiry. Refused to investigate allegations of rape and sexual abuse. Refused to let the UN rapporteur even visit. Refused to come to this House. Instead, in November she renewed Serco’s contract.
 
Gave the same company whose guards stand accused of abuse a contract for another 8 years. Last month the Home Secretary said she’d review policies and procedures in detention centres. She should have done that before she renewed the contract. And now here we are again. Even more serious allegations

A pregnant woman left to have a miscarriage without getting all the medical support she needed. Guards calling women “animals… take a stick with you and beat them up”. Serco guards. Who the Government gave the contract to. Even now, they haven’t set up an independent inquiry. Serco has. It’s an utter disgrace.

The Home Secretary should have come to the House, instead the Minister has been sent out to defend the indefensible. She should go back and tell the Home Secretary to take some responsibility for a change. To stop pregnant women and victims of sexual violence being held in Yarl’s Wood at all.

To hold a proper independent inquiry.

This is state sanctioned abuse of women on the Home Secretary’s watch and it needs to end now.”