Detained migrants complain: This food is far too Western

Caterers told to make meals ‘more diverse’

IMMIGRANTS suspected of being here illegally should be served more ‘culturally diverse’ food, a removal centre has been told.

Caterers face claims that meals at Yarl’s Wood, where suspected illegal immigrants are held supposedly pending deportation, are ‘too Western’ for detainees’ tastebuds.

Inspectors said inmates had complained that lunch at the £100 million centre usually consisted of baguettes and salad.

Only one in seven detainees thought the food was good compared to one in four in 2015, according to the prisons watchdog.

Now private firm Serco, which runs the centre in Bedfordshire, has been told to improve its menus. Yarl’s Wood is home to just over 300 detainees, mainly women, from 61 countries. Most inmates are from India, China or nations in Africa.

A report by Peter Clarke, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, said: ‘The food that we sampled was adequate, but most dishes comprised Western-style food and the menu lacked cultural diversity. The lunchtime meal consisted largely of baguettes or salad. There was very little in any of the menus to reflect the normal diets of, for example, Chinese or African women.’

Food should be suited to the ‘religious and cultural needs’ of detainees, said the report for HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP). Menus should ‘reflect the diverse needs of the population’.

However, managers were praised for preparing meals suitable for vegetarians, vegans and those with halal diets. Detainees also had access to kitchens where they could cook their own food.

Tory MP Philip Davies said: ‘These are people who should not be in the country in the first place, so they should be grateful that they are being looked after so well. That wouldn’t be the case in lots of other countries.’

Previous reports on the centre, which opened in 2001, have found that food was not good enough.

In its 2015 report on Yarl’s Wood, the Independent Monitoring Board – a watchdog that checks conditions inside prisons and removal centres – criticised bosses for dishing up too many pizzas, chips and baguettes.

Despite activists dubbing Yarl’s Wood a ‘ prison camp’, HMIP praised staff in the latest report for providing yoga and aerobics classes for women. Detainees were also given mobile phones so they could contact family and lawyers.

Some of those held at the centre will be sent home. However, others will be granted permission to remain in the UK or bailed. A Home Office spokesman said: ‘Detention and removal are essential parts of effective immigration controls. It is vital these are carried out with dignity and respect and we take the welfare of our detainees very seriously.

‘We are taking action to address the recommendations.’

Earlier this year, it was revealed that suspected illegal immigrants at Morton Hall in Lincolnshire were offered courses on how to be bartenders specialising in alcoholfree fruit cocktails known as ‘mocktails’.

Also on offer were short courses including how to fold napkins in restaurants, window- cleaning, training to be a barista and classes in hotel housekeeping.

The courses, which pay the detainees £1 an hour, are intended to make sure they have skills to secure jobs when they return to their homeland.

It has been estimated that a place at a removal centre costs £30,000 a year.

‘Shouldn’t be here in the first place’