Cheaper to send jailed foreigners on world cruise

London, Dec 5 (UNI) It is cheaper to send foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers on a luxury cruise then locking them inside UK prisons, Daily Mail reported.

Foreigners, who should have been deported costs 43,435 pound a year each.

The bill for keeping 2,550 foreign nationals in immigration centres while they fight their cases is 110 million pounds.

The taxpayer would save 9,125 dollars annually for each of them if they were sent on a 21-country cruise.

Removal centres were costly because they had to follow rules to protect the dignity' of failed asylum seekers.

But they are increasingly being used to house foreign criminals who have been freed but are fighting removal.

The centres have to provide the detainees with activities and TVs and 'NHS' standard healthcare provisions.

Immigration spokesman Mr Green said, ''This is one more price we pay for the chaos and delays in the immigration system.'' Thousands of people locked up for months in detention centres, including foreign prisoners were costing the taxpayer more than 100 million pounds, he said.

Matthew Elliott of the Taxpayers' Alliance said, ''The Home Office must get their act together to remove these people swiftly.

Taxpayers can't afford world cruises, with interest rates soaring and the tax burden increasing.

Between 1,200 and 1,500 foreign criminals are being held in removal centres in the wake of last year's mistaken release scandal, in which 1,000 were allowed to go free without being considered for deportation.

Now, despite finishing their sentences, they are detained alongside failed asylum seekers while cases are processed, often for more than a year.

Home Office Liam Byrne said the government would not hesitate to detain illegal immigrants to remove them from Britain. To keep the public safe, we will invest in the level of security that is right but it doesn't come free.'' Home Office has stated that skilled migrants must obtain a certificate in English from next year before entering Britain.

UNI