Government defends asylum seeker treatment

The Federal Government has defended its approach to the detention of asylum seekers after a report raised concerns about the mental health of detainees.

The ABC's Four Corners program last night documented the deteriorating mental health of detainees inside Australia's immigration detention centres.

It highlighted widespread levels of depression, psychosis and self harm among asylum seekers.

Today, Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration Kate Lundy told Sky Television the cases of self harm were very concerning, but said the Government was moving in the right direction.

"They are disturbing and that's why the Government is doing everything we can in the provision of health and mental health checks when people first go into mandatory detention and the best possible care afterwards," she said.

Immigration Minister Chris Bowen told Four Corners the Curtin detention centre in Western Australia was a "harsh" and "confronting" facility, and said it would be the first he would close if asylum seeker numbers were to drop.

Mr Bowen told the program he was well aware of its difficult climate and remote location - 200 kilometres north of Broome.

But Derby West Kimberley Shire president Elsa Archer has defended the facility.

"Having been out there several times it's quite good and they're well provided for," she said.

Ms Archer says the centre was unfairly represented on the program.

Meanwhile, the chairwoman of the Immigration Department's Detention Health Advisory Group has backed concerns aired in the program about detaining asylum seekers for more than a year.

Psychiatrist Louise Newman has called for the Curtin centre to be closed down and a 90-day limit on mandatory detention for asylum seekers.

"The 90-day limit is in fact quite reasonable. The majority of people if they knew that they were in these facilities for a short period of time that there was an end point to their detention would not deteriorate in the way that we're seeing now," she said.

"We certainly wouldn't see people cutting themselves, and harming themselves and wanting to die."

Professor Newman says mental health patients should be treated, not locked up.

"Well we actually need to adhere to the policy and move out those people with mental health risk factors and those that need treatment need to be in hospitals," she said.

"I think that it's actually such a severe issue that it is unsustainable and it's not appropriate or humane to keep people within this system at the moment."