Australian Human Rights Commission Report title October 2022 but whose visa application is refused or who has their visa cancelled on character grounds. 41. The Minister’s power under s 195A is discretionary. The Minister is not under any duty to consider whether to exercise his or her power in s 195A to grant a visa, even if he or she is requested to do so. 42 A person therefore cannot challenge the Minister’s decision not to exercise this power. 42. The Commission is also concerned that even if the Minister grants a ‘removal pending’ bridging visa under s 195A, such a visa is a temporary solution which only permits the holder to remain in the Australian community until he or she can safely be removed. This offers the holder no certainty about their future in cases where removal is not currently practicable.43 4.2 Mandatory immigration detention 43. Immigration detention remains mandatory for all unlawful non-citizens,44 which can result in prolonged and/or indefinite detention that may be arbitrary and risks mental ill-health.45 The average length of detention has continued to increase reaching 736 days in May 2022 – which is the highest ever recorded.46 The length of time in immigration detention is far higher in Australia than in comparable jurisdictions. For example, in the United Kingdom in 2021, 76% of all detainees had been in immigration detention for fewer than 7 days. In Canada, the average length of detention was 24.1 days between July and September 2021.47 44. People towards whom Australia has non-refoulement obligations and people who are stateless are at particular risk of prolonged detention, as they cannot be readily returned to their country of origin. Under the Migration Act, however, they must remain in immigration detention until they are either granted a visa or removed from Australia. Unless they can meet the requirements for the grant of a Protection Visa (which include satisfying the character test), or there is another country in which they can be resettled, they face the prospect of prolonged and indefinite detention. 45. The detention of an unlawful non-citizen is not based on an individual assessment of the need for detention. The Commission has long recommended that the Migration Act be amended to ensure that closed immigration detention is only used in circumstances where it is strictly necessary to manage unacceptable risks to the community. 48 A short period of closed detention aimed at managing risks to the Australian community 11