A group of migrants have returned to an accommodation barge in Portland, Dorset, amid protests at the port gates. The Bibby Stockholm, which can accommodate up to 500 men awaiting the outcome of asylum applications, was evacuated in August after Legionella bacteria was found in the water supply. The Home Office has since stated that the vessel is “safe and secure.”
Protesters from the group Stand Up To Racism Dorset gathered outside the gates for Portland Port on Thursday, holding banners saying “Scrap the prison barge! Refugees welcome.” Candy Udwin, of Stand Up To Racism Dorset, said: “They hate it, they say it feels like a prison, some hate being on the sea, they find it very difficult to leave and they are completely separated from the community.”
The move comes after local councillor Carralyn Parkes lost a High Court fight with Home Secretary Suella Braverman over the lawfulness of housing asylum seekers on the ship. The barge is part of the government’s policy to reduce the costs of placing migrants in hotels. The Home Office has said that “using vessels as alternative accommodation, like our European neighbours are already doing, will be better value for British taxpayers and more manageable for communities than costly hotels”.
Human rights group Amnesty International has compared the Bibby Stockholm to “prison hulks from the Victorian era” and urged the government to stop “forcing refugees to live in unsafe and undignified accommodation”. Residents on Portland have also objected, voicing concerns that the local community was not consulted
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