Companies are profiting from government immigration policies

Geographer Thom Davies and co-researchers have found that Since 2015, well over £2 billion in UK government contracts have been awarded to private companies for managing border security and small boat crossings in the English Channel. These crossings began in 2018 as other routes through Northern France became more difficult, prompting people to risk crossing the Channel in small boats, often using smugglers. While political attention focuses on criminal gangs, the study highlights that many companies are legally profiting from the UK’s border policies.

The research identified 213 contracts for services including small boat interception, asylum processing, surveillance, and detention. Significant deals include £500 million to Mitie for managing holding facilities and over £170 million to Galliford Try for detention facility redevelopment linked to the now-defunct Rwanda deportation plan. Many other contracts support wider immigration infrastructure, with some financial details redacted, raising transparency concerns.

Thom and his colleagues argue that instead of creating safe routes for asylum seekers, the UK government is funding a growing private border industry, even as cuts are made to public services. Dr Thom Davies, from the School of Geography, University of Nottingham said: “At this time of austerity, a gang of companies are profiting from government policies that simply don’t work.”

Independent article