Bibby Stockholm: Asylum seeker barge docks in Portland as migration bill progresses

A barge that will house asylum seekers under government plans to cut the cost of housing has docked in a Dorset port.

Bibby Stockholm berthed in Portland Port on Tuesday and will stay at the site for 18 months, becoming home to 500 single men claiming asylum.

It was met with protests from local residents and human rights groups.

The vessel's arrival came hours after the government's Illegal Migration Bill cleared key hurdles in the House of Lords and is set to become law.

The bill would outlaw asylum claims by all arrivals via the Channel and other "illegal" routes, and transfer them to third countries like Rwanda.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made cracking down on illegal migration a priority ahead of next year's general election.

It comes as the government said there were currently about 51,000 "destitute migrants" in hotels across the UK, costing the taxpayer in excess of £6m a day.

Many local residents on Portland feared an influx of hundreds of people into the island community would put pressure on local services, such as schools and the NHS. But the government said it was providing "substantial funding to local services including the police and NHS" to support the asylum seekers and "minimise the impact on the community".

Human rights groups branded the barge "inhumane", criticising the conditions in which the migrants will live.

But the government said using vessels as alternative accommodation for asylum seekers would be cheaper than hotels and better value for British taxpayers.

It also stressed the barge would be basic but functional, meeting all the relevant safety standards.

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• Why is Bibby Stockholm barge so controversial?

• As it happened: Bibby Stockholm docks in Dorset

The 222-room, three-storey barge will house adult males, aged from 18 to 65, who are in the latter stages of their asylum applications.

Human rights groups say the barge is not suitable for 500 people

Dozens of protestors gathered outside Portland Port from dawn on Tuesday, waiting for the Bibby Stockholm to make its final manoeuvre into the port.

One of them told the BBC the deal between Portland Port and the Home Office to dock the barge in the Dorset port was "nothing to do about anything other than money".

"They are audaciously negligent," the protestor said, adding: "Audacious - because they have done this deal without any consultation or any thought of any potential fallout."

Other organisations, such as Stand Up to Racism, also joined Tuesday's protests, while many local residents voiced their anger over how the decision was taken.

The first 50 asylum seekers are expected to go aboard in the next few days, while the barge is set to reach its full capacity in the coming weeks.

Dorset Council previously said Portland Port was not the right location for the barge

The asylum seekers are expected to live on the vessel for about three to six months while their claims are dealt with. They will not be officially detained and there will be no curfew but security staff will be at the site.

The government said all the barge residents had undergone "robust security checks", including checks against domestic and international databases. They have also had their fingerprints and identities recorded.

While the government said it needed to reduce the cost of housing asylum seekers, shadow home secretary Labour Yvette Cooper described the use of barges as "a sign of the Conservatives' total failure to clear the asylum backlog".

The Conservative MP for Dorset South, Richard Drax, said he had "a lot of sympathy with the government" as migrants continue to cross the English Channel.

"But putting them on a barge is not the answer," he added.

The asylum seekers are expected to live on the vessel for about three to six months

Bibby Stockholm was previously used to house homeless people and asylum seekers in Germany and the Netherlands. It has been refurbished since it was criticised as an "oppressive environment" when the Dutch government used it.

The vessel now has en-suite rooms, a TV and games room and a gym, according to a fact sheet from its owner, Bibby Maritime.

Portland Port previously said providing berthing space for the barge was "the right thing to do".

It added the plan would allow Dorset to "play its part in the national effort to house some of the thousands of asylum seekers needing accommodation".

It stressed it had provided a range of information for local people, councils and groups, but said it had been unable to disclose information earlier due to the confidential nature of negotiations with the government.

The Home Office said its plans for "alternative accommodation" - which also include former military bases - was clearly cheaper than the cost of hotels.

However, the full costs of the barge have not been disclosed, with refugee campaign group Reclaim The Sea claiming the Bibby Stockholm would cost more than hotels.

The Home Office said it would "continue to work extremely closely with local councils and key partners to prepare for arrival of asylum seekers later this month and minimise disruption for local residents including through substantial financial support".

Dorset Council will receive £1.7m over the duration of the vessel's stay in the port. The council has also received a one-off grant of almost £380,000.