Staff at Manston immigration centre would be unable to deal with large scale unrest at the site and would have to “retreat” in event of a riot, according to workers onsite.
Kevin Mills, border force worker and union representative, told The Independent that staff at the short-stay processing centre don’t have the training or the numbers to cope with significant unrest.
“I’m under no illusions that should something really nasty kick off we would not be in a position to control it,” he said.
Mr Mills, who is in regular contact with workers at Manston, said that staff are worried about being sent to work at the site because they know they have limited resources.
Staff have found makeshift weapons at the site and asylum seekers have already carried out peaceful protests against their detention.
Andy Baxter of the Prison Officers’ Association has warned that asylum seekers at the centre are threatening to self-harm and go on hunger strike. He also warned of the potential for riots at the overcrowded facility.
“Their concern and my concern is that if something does happen, I’m not sure we’re adequately trained. We definitely don’t have adequate staffing if something serious kicked off,” Mr Mills, representative from the Public and Commerical Services (PCS) Union, said.
“We would have to rely on the police and the police, with the greatest respect, are pretty stretched as it is. Our members recognise that and that is definitely playing on their anxiety and mental health.”
PCS has several hundreds members who work across the Manston and Western Jet Foil immigration centres.
Speaking about the possibility of widespread unrest, Mr Mills added: “I think it’s a case of ‘retreat to a safe environment’ situation.
“The officers are concerned about the sheer numbers of people there. They have said to me ‘you can feel the pressure building’.
“We can’t control that sort of number should anything major happen. We’ve also not been taught how to control it. We know how to deal with small bits of violence and how to diffuse situations, but at what point is our training inadequate?”, he asked.
Sir Roger Gale, the Conservative MP for North Thanet - which includes Manston, said “several hundred” asylum seekers have been moved from the facility.
Two coaches with heavily tinted windows were seen leaving the centre at around 4:15pm on Tuesday. The buses appeared full and another coach entered the site at around 4:25pm.
Immigration minister Robert Jenrick said: “Numbers of migrants have fallen substantially today [Tuesday] and we expect them to do so again tomorrow. Unless we receive an unexpectedly high numbers of migrants in small boats in the coming days, numbers will fall significantly this week.”
Mr Mills welcomed the reduction in numbers but cautioned: “The weather yesterday would have stopped any arrivals so the buses could only have been to move them out. But 100 [people being moved out] if you’ve got 4000 people inside is negligible when that site should only hold between 1,000 and 1,500.
“It’s in the right direction but on a normal day, with normal weather, that still wouldn’t be more than coming in.”
A Home Office spokesperson said the asylum system was “under incredible pressure”.
They added: “Manston remains resourced and equipped to process migrants securely and we will provide alternative accommodation as soon as possible.
“We urge anyone who is thinking about leaving a safe country and risk their lives at the hands of criminal people smugglers to seriously reconsider. Despite what they have been told, they will not be allowed to start a new life here.”
