Profiteers from human misery

Vanguard April 2014 p. 3
Duncan B.

“Where there is misery there is money” could be the motto for the companies providing services to the Department of Immigration connected with running detention centres for asylum seekers.

 The four biggest companies involved are G4S, Serco, Transfield and Toll. Between them they have reaped contracts worth more than $5.6 billion from the Department of Immigration.

Serco, which runs the Department’s network of detention centres in Australia, is the big winner with $3.22 billion since 2009. Transfield is in second place with $1.57 billion since 2010. Transfield, which runs the detention centre on Nauru recently won a $1.22 billion contract to run the detention centre on Manus Island.

This was at the expense of G4S which has made $828 million since 2003. Toll comes in way behind with only $68.8 million since 2008.

The Government’s new contract with Transfield means that it will cost about $61 million per month to run the two detention centres. This is about $900 per day for each inmate.

This money could be better spent in helping asylum seekers, once processed, to settle into the community and give them the necessary housing and support services they need.