[ad_1]
The British government says it has chartered a refurbished barge to house 500 migrants on its south coast, as it faces criticism over plans to block asylum seekers arriving in small boats from across the English Channel.
The government said the decision to use the ship was part of an effort to reduce the use of expensive hotels as temporary accommodation while asylum claims are being processed.
The 93-metre-long barge, the Bibby Stockholm, will be docked at Portland Harbor in Dorset and will accommodate 500 people, the UK Home Secretary said.
Migrants will be transferred on the ship “in the coming months” and will be operational for at least 18 months, the ministry said, adding that it is in discussions with other ports about the use of other ships.
“We must use alternative accommodation options, as our European neighbors do – including using barges and ferries to save British taxpayers money and to prevent the UK becoming a magnet for asylum seekers in Europe,” said Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Wednesday his government had chartered a barge to accommodate 500 migrants off England’s south coast as part of efforts to reduce the use of expensive hotels as temporary accommodation while asylum claims are processed.
“All accommodation will meet our legal obligations and we will work with local communities to address these issues, including through financial support.”
The barge will provide “basic and functional” accommodation with health care and catering facilities as well as onboard security, the government said.
45,000 attended last year
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made cracking down on illegal migration one of his top priorities ahead of elections expected next year.
Government data showed 201 migrants were detected crossing the Channel on Tuesday. The number of arrivals in 2022 is more than 45,000.
The government, which last week also said it would set up basic migrant accommodation at military bases, said hotel accommodation for asylum seekers was equivalent to $10 million a day. It does not provide a fee for the barge.
The move has been criticized by human rights groups for not providing adequate housing, while some MPs from Sunak’s ruling Conservative Party are concerned about its impact on local communities.
“There will be no control over where they go, what they do, in a very sensitive coastal town,” Richard Drax, MP for Dorset, told GB News. “We haven’t even asked anyone… about the consequences of this deployment.”
Restaurant, sports equipment
Bibby Stockholm was originally built in the Netherlands in 1976 and converted into a floating hotel in 1992.
According to its owner, Liverpool-based Bibby Marine Ltd, it can accommodate up to 506 people in 222 rooms, although it is marketed as being designed with “single en-suite bedrooms.”
Promotional material on the Bibby Marine Ltd website. describes the ship as a shower in every room, plus a restaurant, galley, laundry facilities and a recreation room with sports equipment.
The company, which owns five similar ships, says its aim is to provide housing for workers when accommodation is unavailable or too expensive.
Other countries, including the Netherlands and Germany, have chartered Bibby Stockholm (formerly known as Floatel Stockholm) and other accommodation barges to accommodate asylum seekers or the homeless in the past.
A report from Amnesty International Netherlands criticized the use of barges and other sea vessels to accommodate detained asylum seekers, since 2005.
Advocates and human rights groups have slammed the British government for its promise to deport some asylum seekers to third countries, such as Rwanda, as a way to prevent migrant boat crossings in the English Channel.
Last year, Britain struck a deal with Rwanda to accept hundreds of asylum seekers but the plan was put on hold due to legal challenges.
At least 27 migrants crossing from France to Britain died when their boat capsized, in what France’s interior minister called the biggest tragedy involving migrants in the English Channel.
[ad_2]
Source link