Bibby Stockholm: Migrants changing minds over move to barge - Robert Jenrick

A "significant" number of asylum seekers who had refused to board the Bibby Stockholm have now changed their minds about moving to the barge, the immigration minister has told the BBC.

"A significant number moved yesterday, I suspect more will move in the coming days," Robert Jenrick said.

Asylum seekers already on the vessel have been describing the conditions.

One told the BBC it was like a prison without the room to accommodate up to 500 people, as the government plans.

But others have praised the food, facilities and cleanliness on the barge.

Residents are free to come and go, and ministers said it was safe and decent accommodation.

Two asylum seekers living on the barge, aged 19 and 25, and who the BBC are not identifying, said they arrived in the UK earlier this year by plane after facing religious persecution in their home country.

The 25-year-old said: "The food is good - much better than the hotel. The rooms are small but nice, clean and tidy."

The 19-year-old added there was an IT centre but that it could only be used at allocated times.

"We have indoor games," he said. "We have a football ground, small basketball hoops, and some board games. It's quite a nice place."

However, he said he was not happy on board because he had been removed from a religious community where he had been housed previously.

"I was happy when I was with my people, with my community," he explained. "Our main purpose is to practice our religion."

Two asylum seekers who spoke to the BBC praised the quality of the food onboard

He said his request not to be moved from his hotel on the south coast alongside his community had been refused.

"They said that you have to go to the barge," he said. "It's basically on a no-choice basis. So you have to come here."

Another asylum seeker, from Afghanistan, said: "The sound of locks and security checks gives me the feeling of entering Alcatraz prison.

"My roommate panicked in the middle of the night and felt like he was drowning. There are people among us who have been given heavy drugs for depression by the doctor here."

He said he had been given a small room, and the dining hall had capacity for fewer than 150 people.

"Like a prison, it [the barge] has entrance and exit gates, and at some specific hours, we have to take a bus, and after driving a long distance, we go to a place where we can walk. We feel very bad," the man added.

Robert Jenrick has repeatedly defended the government's use of a the migrant barge

Mr Jenrick said the numbers aboard the vessel - moored at Portland Port in Dorset - would increase "in the coming days" from the initial group of about 20, but no date had been set for reaching full capacity.

"We have written to those individuals who have so far declined to travel and, as I understand it, a significant proportion of them have already changed their minds and agreed to move," he said.

Asylum seekers have been told refusing to board the Bibby Stockholm barge could result in them no longer receiving government support.

Mr Jenrick said there was "not a menu of options" for those seeking state-funded help.

"We've got to be fair to the tax payers as well as decent and compassionate to the individuals concerns.

"If you choose to turn down perfectly acceptable accommodation such as the barge, we give those people due notice and if they don't change their mind, we do withdraw their accommodation support."

He said those affected would have to "look after themselves".

There has been considerable local opposition to the barge coming to Portland

• Asylum seekers describe life on the housing barge

• UK signs deal with Turkey to disrupt people-smuggling gangs

• On board the barge set to house asylum seekers

• Why is the barge so controversial?

• Police probe letter threats to migrant barge firms

Bibby Stockholm is the flagship of the government's latest plan to "stop the boats" and deter dangerous Channel crossings by migrants. Men aged 18-65 will live on the vessel while they await the outcome of asylum applications.

The Care4Calais charity said on Monday it was providing legal support to 20 asylum seekers who had refused to move to Portland and were challenging the decision.

"Housing people fleeing threats and persecution on an overcrowded barge is appalling, and in itself likely to cause extreme distress," it said.

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said on Tuesday that the Bibby Stockholm is "basically safe and decent accommodation".

"What [the British public] don't expect is that we're spending six million a day on four-star hotel accommodation," he told Sky News.

Migrants will sleep in shared cabins

The 222-room, three-storey barge arrived in Portland Port more than three weeks ago, chartered by the government to reduce the cost of placing asylum seekers in hotels.

Ministers pressed ahead with the plans despite safety warnings from the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) which has raised concerns over narrow exits and possible overcrowding.

It includes catering, a TV room, a multi-faith prayer room and a gym.

Migrants will be free to leave on hourly buses to Weymouth and Portland, although they are encouraged to return by 23:00 each night.

The Home Office has said the barge occupants will undergo security screening and Dorset Police has said it does not expect any impact on the local community.