While the Morrison Government claims it will spend more than $1 billion reopening the Christmas Island detention centre, evidence of the incredible waste of keeping the facility on standby is starting to emerge.

The West Australian gained rare access to the perimeter of the North West Point detention centre, which has historically been difficult for outsiders to get close to.

The centre was closed last year but looks set to be brought out of mothballs to house medical transfers from Nauru and Manus Island. The centre remains in pristine condition and resembles a high-security prison on the Australian mainland.

Camera Icon The perimeter of the Immigration Detention Centre on Christmas Island. Credit: Nic Ellis.

At the back of the centre, staff have dumped three modern buses and allowed them to be destroyed by the harsh environment of the surrounding jungle.

The buses have registration stickers showing they were still in use as recently as 2015. They were likely among those used to carry staff and detainees to the centre.

It was put into “contingency mode” last year after it was finally emptied of visa overstayers and criminals awaiting deportation. It is surrounded by razor wire and ringed with surveillance cameras.

Though empty for months, the centre boasts a pristine soccer pitch that appears to have been mowed regularly and had its boundary lines continually remarked.

Growing numbers of staff for security company Serco have been arriving on the island in preparation for reopening the detention camps.

As well as North West Point, other camps more centrally located on Christmas Island also appear to be under preparation to receive transferees.

The so-called Drumsite camp, which was used to house family groups, is also being staffed.