Last asylum seekers living on Bibby Stockholm set to leave barge

The last asylum seekers living on the Bibby Stockholm are set to leave the barge.

A group of eight remaining men will leave the accommodation moored in Portland, Dorset, on Tuesday, according to a support group.

A spokesperson for Portland Global Friendship Group told the PA news agency: “We held our last community drop-in yesterday. We have been saying goodbye to the men for months as there has been a continual movement since the men first arrived in August last year.

“We continue to support many asylum seekers nationwide from the Bibby Stockholm remotely as they navigate the complex asylum process.

“Portland Global Friendship Group has created a meaningful community here on Portland, at its essence is friendship, kindness and compassion. We are considering how this energy can continue going into the future.”

Contract

Hundreds of residents have departed from the barge after the Government said it would not renew its contract which expires in January.

One asylum seeker previously told PA that “everyone was happy” that the barge accommodation was shutting down so that other people will be saved from going through the same experience on the ship he described as sometimes feeling like a prison.

Labour has said continuing the use of the Bibby Stockholm would have cost more than £20 million next year, and that scrapping it forms part of the expected £7.7 billion of savings in asylum costs over the next 10 years.

The asylum seekers accommodated on the barge, who were all men, were being dispersed to accommodation in places including Cardiff, Wolverhampton and Bristol, according to the BBC.

None of them will be moved to the Dorset Council catchment, which includes the area around Portland and Weymouth.

Setbacks

The Bibby Stockholm, which can house up to 500 people, has faced a series of setbacks since it was commissioned in April 2023.

The discovery of dangerous bacteria led to its evacuation last summer just days after the arrival of the first asylum seekers, and it remained vacant for two months.

An Albanian asylum seeker, Leonard Farruku, who died while living on board the barge in December, is thought to have taken his own life.

An inquest into his death will resume next year.

Labour MP for South Dorset, Lloyd Hatton, had welcomed the closure of the Bibby Stockholm barge in his constituency.

He said: “We all know this barge was a gimmick.

“First it arrived late, second it cost the taxpayer a fortune.

“Third it was laden with fire and disease risks, and fourth it likely contributed to the death of a 27-year-old asylum seeker on board.”