UK Asylum Detainees Accuse Government of 'Severe Psychological Harm'

Eighty asylum seekers have called on United Nations investigators to examine their treatment by the UK government. The men are being held for removal to France under the controversial "one in, one out" scheme. They arrived in the UK by small boat. In a formal report, the detainees claim the Home Office has caused them "fear, humiliation and psychological distress." They allege "degrading treatment" and "severe psychological harm." The report details conditions at the Harmondsworth immigration removal centre near London's Heathrow Airport. Harmondsworth is one of two facilities holding people for the new returns scheme. The "one in, one out" policy allows the UK to return a migrant who crossed the Channel in a small boat for each migrant accepted from France via legal routes. The government says it will deter dangerous crossings. The detainees now seek international intervention from UN bodies.