The hunger strikers have been without food since Tuesday night

Asylum seekers from so-called "white list" states are supposed to have their applications dealt with within 10 days at Oakington, the Home Office's fast-track detention processing centre in Cambridgeshire.

But some of the protesters, from Jamaica, Albania and Romania, told BBC Look East their applications had taken as long as three months.

A Home Office spokeswoman said the would-be refugees had refused to leave the centre's sports field after morning exercise.

They last ate on Tuesday evening.

A spokesman for the hunger strikers said they wanted to know why processing was taking so long.

Clearly if people are staying here for a much longer time it is another indication that Oakington is being used for the wrong purposes Cambridgeshire South MP Andrew Lansley

"People are getting depressed and fed up. They are sick and tired of what is going on. We just want to know what is going on," he said.

Cambridgeshire South MP Andrew Lansley said the Government set up Oakington for decisions to be made between seven to 10 days.

"It is designed for that. The security is designed for that.

"Clearly if people are staying here for a much longer time it is another indication that Oakington is being used for the wrong purposes and the rest of the system not backing it up properly."

No right of appeal

The Home Office said it was aware of the protest but did not recognise it as a hunger strike because by Wednesday evening the asylum seekers had only missed a couple of meals.

The list of people being dealt with at the centre currently features 24 countries, including states in eastern Europe, the Indian sub-continent and South America, plus Jamaica and South Africa.

They have no right of appeal while they remain in Britain.

A total of 90 people are being detained at Oakington, which is run by Group 4.