The local lawmaker and council say the area is unsuitable for hundreds of asylum seekers. However, the government has stated that it must relocate them from expensive hotels.
The Home Office has verified that a massive ship docked off the coast of Dorset will be used to house hundreds of asylum seekers, despite legal threats from local Tories.
The Bibby Stockholm will house 500 single adult men in Portland Port for 18 months while their claims are processed.
The Home Office stated that the accommodations will be “basic” and will include healthcare, catering, and 24-hour security.
It did not specify the expense of the lease agreement but insisted that it is “considerably less expensive than hotels.”
The plan faces opposition from the Tory-controlled Dorset Council and local Conservative representative Richard Drax, who are contemplating legal action.
Charities and human rights activists have also criticized the government, stating that the accommodations are not suitable for individuals fleeing war.
However, Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick stated, “Both the Home Secretary and I have been adamant that the use of expensive hotels to house individuals making unnecessary and dangerous journeys must cease.”
“We will not put illegal immigrants ahead of the British people, who elected us.”
“We must utilize alternative housing options, as do our European neighbors, including barges and ferries, to save the British taxpayer money and prevent the United Kingdom from becoming a magnet for asylum seekers in Europe,”
The Home Office says people will be put onto the barge in Italy “coming months.”
Discussions with additional locations and vessels will be “announced in due course,” the statement continued.
Mr. Jenrick insisted that all housing would satisfy “legal requirements” and that the government would work closely with the local community to address their concerns, “including through financial assistance.
Lawyers looking at proposal
Mr. Drax warned legal action over the “floatel,” sparking Conservative Party civil war fears.
The South Dorset MP, who has previously supported stringent measures to reduce UK immigration, stated that the barge was “dumped on our door” by the Home Office without consultation and urged Home Secretary Suella Braverman to abandon the plan.
He told that “attorneys are reviewing it” and that the local authorities have also expressed concerns about the proposed changes.
“We want to get rid of this before anything is signed,” he explained.
Mr. Drax stated that the site is a “very, very restricted area” and voiced his concern over the placement of hundreds of vulnerable individuals there, stating that it would strain the port’s “very small” police force.
He stated that they would be transported by bus from the port to nearby Portland Harbour, a “summer resort almost entirely dependent on visitors and tourists” with a crowded beach.
“For these and other reasons, I reject it,” he said.
“When are they delivered, and how many are? Where are they left, what are they doing, where do they go, and do they return?
“We already know that some migrants have vanished from hotels, and we fear that some have joined groups. Are they going to remain? No, to the west are Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole, Dorchester, and Bridport.
“They could vanish into thin air, so I’m not pleased for all these reasons.”
The Tory-controlled Dorset council opposes the use of Portland Port as a location for the vessel. Which is essentially a large apartment complex on a floating platform.
According to reports, it could house 506 migrants in 222 bedrooms across three stories for £20,000 per day.
Since being characterized as an “oppressive environment” for asylum seekers in the Netherlands. The barge has been renovated, according to Bibby Marine Limited, a Liverpool-based operator.
Bill Reeves, the chief executive officer of Portland Port, stated, “We encourage everyone in the community to approach this with an open mind and help us demonstrate to other regions how successful this type of initiative can be for both migrants and the local community.
The Times claimed that the vessel would cost £15,000 per day to charter and over £4,500 to berth in Portland. Additional fees would be necessary for services such as security and catering.
“Complete inability to eliminate the asylum backlog”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted that the barge would save taxpayers money. As the government spends approximately £6 million per day to house asylum claimants in hotels.
However, Labour stated that the barge is an addition to hotel accommodations, not a replacement.
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper stated, “This announcement demonstrates the Conservatives’ complete inability to clear the asylum backlog, combat criminal smuggling networks, and gain control of the system.
This barge supplements lodgings and costs more than twice as much as asylum living. It will hold only 0.3% of the current Conservative backlog, which has skyrocketed under the Conservatives and continues to grow.”
Steve Valdez-Symonds of Amnesty International UK stated, “Confining hundreds of people in isolation on a barge is simply more political theatre devised by the government to conceal its gross mismanagement of the asylum system.
Along with the disastrous Rwanda plan, all discussions regarding barges, cruise ships, and former military installations should be abandoned.
“Asylum seekers should be housed in decent housing with adequate amenities and their claims processed properly and consistently.”
