Doctors have criticised a Federal Government move to ban mobile phones from immigration detention centres, warning it will undermine detainees’ access to independent medical advice.

The Migration Act amendment bill was introduced to Federal Parliament in May and seeks to address “significant threats” posed by mobile phones and other internet-capable devices.

The devices could be used to “co-ordinate escape efforts, to access child exploitation material and to intimidate and threaten the safety and welfare of staff or other detainees”, the government claims.

However it says detainees will still have access to “alternative communication avenues” such as landline phones, postal services and face-to-face visits.