What next for Maribyrnong immigration detention centre after closure?

The immigration detention centre in Maribyrnong has closed its doors after transferring more than 100 detainees to other facilities over the past month. But what will happen to the site?

The Maribyrnong Immigration Detention Centre has closed.

The immigration detention centre in Maribyrnong has closed its doors after transferring its remaining detainees to other facilities over the past month.

And three children on Nauru were transferred to Australia just before Christmas, leaving seven children remaining — including four who have been accepted to the US.

SUSPECTED ICE LAB FOUND AT DETENTION CENTRE

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The Morrison Government will today reveal the Maribyrnong detention centre’s official closure, and confirm the Blaxland detention centre in Sydney will shut by mid-year.

The detention centre in Melbourne’s northwest will be decommissioned over the coming days after closing on New Year’s Eve, marking a major ramping down of Australia’s onshore processing network.

At its peak, the trouble-prone centre held hundreds of asylum seekers and migrants, with multiple cases of escapes and unrest.

The trouble-prone centre once held hundreds of asylum seekers and migrants. Picture: Brendan Francis

Immigration Minister David Coleman said the two immigration centres were closing due to the success of the government’s Operation Sovereign Borders campaign, which has virtually stopped boat arrivals carrying asylum seekers.

“Under the previous Labor government, 50,000 people arrived on 800 boats, 1200 people tragically drowned at sea, and 8000 children were put in detention,” Mr Coleman said.

“At its peak in July 2013, there were more than 10,000 people in held immigration detention facilities in Australia, including 2000 children.

“This government has stopped the boats, got the children out of detention, and closed the once full immigration detention facilities.”

The previous Labor government was forced to open 17 immigration detention centres to manage the influx of boat arrivals.

The Coalition government has now closed or put into contingency 19 detention centres since coming to power in 2013.

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DETENTION CENTRE TO CLOSE, LAND SOLD

It has not yet been decided what the government will do with the Maribyrnong site.

Asked whether the state government would be interested in purchasing the site and converting it into a prison, a Victorian government spokesman said: “Like any good government, we undertake a range of activities to plan for and meet future demand.”

The Australian Border Force and its service provider Serco will maintain a limited presence at the centre over the coming weeks to undertake decommissioning works.

On November 30 last year, there were 107 detainees at the Maribyrnong centre, with the last of them transferred to other onshore facilities on Monday.

There are about 100 “high risk” detainees left at the Blaxland facility in Sydney, and they will be transferred to other detention facilities over the next six months.

Both detention centres were originally slated to close in 2018.

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