the mistreatment of people at an immigration removal centre at gatwick airport is the subject of a public inquiry which opened today. it comes after bbc panorama broadcast undercover footage in 2017 showing assaults, humiliation and verbal abuse of detainees by officers at brook house in sussex. this report from our home affairs correspondent tom symonds contains distressing images from the start. brooke house were ex prisoners and asylum seekers are held before they are deported. in 2017, a custody officer. went undercoverfor 2017, a custody officer. went undercover for the bbc s app panorama, filming incidents like this, a suicidal man put in a joking neck hold. and more. including verbal abuse by staff and detainees
hostage, many of them badly mistreated over the coming months. what has emerged today in files is that the british ambassador in kuwait made a phone call as the invasion was starting, and as the plane was in the air, and it was circulated around whitehall that this was happening but it was never passed on to british airways, and as a result, the plane landed. now, passengers and crew have welcomed that admission, but they remain angry because they believe there is another secret to be a 149, which is that they think there was a group of undercover intelligence operatives on board whom they saw get off the flight. today, the government has stuck by its denial that the flight was exploited for some kind of intelligence mission, so the controversy around ba 149 remains, despite today s admission and apology. gordon, thank you. a public inquiry has opened into the mistreatment of people at an immigration removal centre at gatwick airport. it comes after bbc panorama
released under investigation. avon and somerset police won t comment on social media reports that there had been an ongoing dispute about parking on the estate, but they have confirmed that officers had contact in the past with those involved. local people have been told this was an isolated incident. heartbreaking, you know, and to look at the situation that this community sees, as i say, i don t want anyone speculating. our thoughts are with the families, and my officers are supporting that process. jennifer chapple worked in a garden centre coffee shop. stephen chapple was a teacher. theirfamilies have asked for privacy. jon kay, bbc news, somerset. the mistreatment of people at an immigration removal centre at gatwick airport is the subject of a public inquiry which opened today. it comes after bbc panorama broadcast undercover footage in 2017 showing alleged assaults, humiliation and verbal abuse of detainees by officers