'No compelling case' to expand scheme for removal of foreign national prisoners, says Justice Minister
There is “no compelling case” to expand a scheme to remove foreign national prisoners from Northern Ireland, Stormont’s Justice Minister has said.
Naomi Long was pressed to expand the Early Removal Scheme which aims to enable the deportation of foreign national offenders at an earlier point in their sentence in England and Wales.
In Northern Ireland the scheme is voluntary and applies only to prisoners serving fixed term determinate sentences up to a maximum of 135 days before their requisite custodial sentence expires subject to agreement by the Home Office.
Ms Long said given the relatively small number of prisoners using the scheme and “lack of evidence” that extending the 135-day period would lead to a significant increase in removals, she did not consider there to be a “compelling case for change at this time”.
“Accordingly I have no plans to introduce a statutory rule to amend the current arrangements before the end of this Assembly mandate,” she told MLAs.
DUP MLA Gareth Wilson claimed most members of the public would be “astounded” that despite the pressures on prisons and the justice services that those eligible can “simply opt out”.
He called for the “strengthening” of the scheme.
Ms Long responded saying there were around 249 foreign national prisoners in Northern Ireland.
As of last week, there were just over 2,300 people in prison in Northern Ireland total, states the Department of Justice’s website.
The minister said there are just 45 foreign national prisoners who are eligible for the scheme, and of those 16 have applied to be considered for early removal by the Home Office.
“Given the very small size of that eligible cohort, the limited number of applications, the potential for increased legal challenge and the fact that responsibility for deportation decisions ultimately rests with the Home Office, I do not think that there is a compelling case for legislation at this time, given particularly the stress which the department and the committee are already dealing with the legislative burden that we have already brought forward,” Ms Long told MLAs.
“However I will keep the operation of the scheme under review because I think we would all agree that where someone can leave early and wishes to do so, that is possibly the simplest way to deal with those cases.”