Bibby Stockholm barge will close as Labour pledge to overhaul asylum system
23 July 2024, 13:41 | Updated: 23 July 2024, 14:11
The Bibby Stockholm barge is set to close next year as part of Labour's overhaul of the asylum system.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
The government said it would not renew the contract for the barge, which is used to house hundreds of asylum seekers off the Dorset coast, when it expires in January next year.
Extending the contract past next January would have cost £20 million, according to the government.
Ministers said stopping using the barge would form part of an expected £7.7 billion in savings in the asylum system.
The barge was set up by the previous Conservative government as part of its attempts to cut hotel bills for migrants who had come to the UK on small boats. The first migrants were moved onto the barge in August last year.
James O'Brien lambasts the 'stubborn ignorance' of Tory MPs for believing lies about Bibby Stockholm
It has capacity for 500 men, aged between 18 and 65. Concerns have emerged about overcrowding and conditions on board the barge, and dozens of charities called for it to be closed.
A man took his own life on board in December, according to a charity.
As of last week, there were 410 people on board the barge. A charity that supports asylum seekers told LBC that some on board referred to the Bibby Stockholm as the "hell barge".
Earlier this month around 100 men took part in a protest on board - standing in the rain from midnight through to 2pm and skipping meals.
Residents later went on hunger strike for two days because of ‘crammed conditions’ and the uncertainty of not knowing when they would be leaving.
Caller: Bibby Stockholm suicide is being used as a 'political pawn' against the barge
Last month Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, being interviewed on Nick Ferrari at Breakfast, told LBC: "The barges are incredibly expensive - we need to end these extortionate barges, bases and hotels as fast as possible."
The Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Dame Angela Eagle MP said: "We are determined to restore order to the asylum system, so that it operates swiftly, firmly and fairly; and ensures the rules are properly enforced.
"The Home Secretary has set out plans to start clearing the asylum backlog and making savings on accommodation which is running up vast bills for the taxpayer.
"The Bibby Stockholm will continue to be in use until the contract expires in January 2025."
Refugee charities welcomed the decision to close the Bibby Stockholm.
Steve Smith, CEO of Care4Calais said: “The Bibby Stockholm became the physical symbol for the last Government’s inhumane treatment of people seeking sanctuary in the UK.
"The despair and suffering the barge has caused will live long in the people who were residents of it. Nor will not renewing the contract bring back Leonard Farruku, whose family have lost their loved one forever."
But he added that the government should also close the migrant camp at Wethersfield in Essex, where over 500 men are being held.
