DETAINEES at the Haslar immigration centre in Gosport are organising a hunger strike in protest at conditions there.

A protest was also held midweek when a quarter of the 160 immigrants held at the centre refused to go back to their cells.

The action comes after a damning report into conditions at the centre was published by the prisons inspectorate last week.

Haslar was ranked lowest of all detention centres in the country following the inspection last year.

It said that detainees waiting to have their applications processed felt unsafe in the centre and criticised the lack of staff involvement.

Criticism was also levelled at the lack of services available to detainees, including a lack of interpretation and legal advice.

The recent unrest following the report's publication has won the sympathy of volunteers who visit the detainees at the centre.

Mike Woolley from the visitors' group said: "We are not surprised that the detainees are organising a hunger strike. They are being held indefinitely without charge for purely administrative convenience. Some have been in Haslar for over a year."

Following the report the Home Office said that improvements were being made at the centre.

But according to Mr Woolley not enough progress is being made.

"The Home Office is currently making some minor improvements to the centre and the regime but is not addressing the major problems of inadequate buildings, long lock-up times and staff whose experience and training is in dealing with criminals.

"In some ways things are getting worse; complaints about the quantity and quality of the food in particular seem to have increased."