Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill [HL]

I am grateful to the Minister for that comprehensive reply, although it raises some further anxiety in my mind, particularly over his response to the question on the complaints made at the juxtaposed controls. He said that a senior customs official deals with them, but that person cannot be fully independent now that we are talking about the integration of the customs and immigration services. However independently minded the person may be, he is not technically independent of the service that he is investigating. That arrangement must be looked at again to see whether the person who is investigating the complaints could be separated entirely from those whom he is looking into. The Minister is aware that I have a particular anxiety about the situation with juxtaposed controls, where I do not think that we exercise real oversight. He confirmed that when there was a case of alleged criminal misconduct by any of the UK staff or contractors, it would be for the French or Belgian criminal authorities to look into it. We do not get any knowledge of the reports that are made to the French and Belgian authorities, but this Parliament should be aware of what is going on. We have always said that the juxtaposed controls are not liable to the same kind of parliamentary scrutiny as the services of the immigration authorities in this country. The noble Lord confirmed what we have always feared. There is not the same oversight as if the events took place at Yarl’s Wood or at detention offices at Heathrow or Gatwick. The juxtaposed controls are less open to scrutiny and, as far as I know, there has never been a report laid before your Lordships’ House or another place summarising the complaints that have been made to the French or Belgian authorities about the treatment of people detained in those centres. With regard to what the Minister said about Scotland and Northern Ireland, we will await the reply that he has promised to give to my noble friend. We will digest that and the other helpful remarks that he has made about these services. Meanwhile, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment 22 withdrawn. Amendment 23 had been withdrawn from the Marshalled List.