Contract ends this week for Dorset's Bibby Stockholm migrant barge

The last asylum seeker was moved off the vessel six weeks ago

Author: Faye TryhornPublished 8th Jan 2025

The Government's contract for Dorset's Bibby Stockholm comes to an end this week (by Friday 10th January) - six weeks after the last migrant was moved off the barge.

The Home Office decided not to renew the lease for the vessel, moored at Portland Port.

The men on board were waiting for their asylum applications to be processed - and have all been rehoused across the country, to places including Cardiff, Wolverhampton and Bristol.

None of them remain living in the Dorset Council catchment

The barge - which could accommodate up to 500 people, proved controversial - due to concerns about living conditions and the impact the asylum seekers could have on the community.

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.

Giovanna Lewis from the Portland Global Friendship Group says the migrants were good people:

"We're pleased that no more human beings have to suffer living on the barge and that that's over for them. We still keep in touch with many of them, so it's not all over for us.

"They've just survived it all as best they can. The overarching thing is that the whole system takes so long. Many have been waiting months and months or even years, unable to work during that time, and that's not good for human beings.

"All of the guys that I've met would be valuable assets and contributors to society. Their home countries will lose a lot by them leaving and we'll gain a lot."

South Dorset MP Lloyd Hatton has also welcomed the barge's closure - in a Facebook post he said:

"The new government has worked, at pace, to crunch through the backlog of asylum cases. As promised, the barge will now leave Portland in the new year.

"From the beginning, our community knew that this barge was a costly and unworkable gimmick. The previous Conservative Government landed us with this wasteful barge, by closing it down we are saving the taxpayer a small fortune. This barge was never the answer.

"Working closely with the new Labour Government, I have been able to help shut down the barge for good."

It's expected the vessel will be moved from Portland Port in the coming weeks.

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