Ministers are on the verge of signing a deal to house up to 500 asylum seekers on a barge in Portland Harbour in Dorset.
It’s understood the final touches are being added to the contract which would see the 93-metre-long Bibby Stockholm come under Home Office control.
It’s part of a pledge by Rishi Sunak’s Government to end the controversial practice of housing asylum seekers in hotel accommodation, which is currently costing the tax payer up to £7million a day.
As well as the use of the barge, the Home Office has also announced plans house around 3,000 migrants in two disused RAF bases.
The 93-metre-long Bibby Stockholm will come under Home Office control
Bibby Marine
The Ministry of Defence run sites at Wethersfield in Essex and Scampton in Lincolnshire have been prepared for the imminent arrival of asylum seekers.
The Prime Minister announced in December that the Government planned to stop using hotels to house migrants.
Around 400 hotels right across the country have been requisitioned by the Home Office to hold more than 51,000 asylum seekers.
Although a move away from using hotels will be welcomed by many, the plans face fierce opposition in communities near the proposed locations for the large-scale asylum seeker accommodation centres.
Residents in the village of Wethersfield in Essex told GB News they were determined to fight the plans to locate at least 1,500 asylum seekers to the nearby base.
The local district council has confirmed it is seeking a judicial review in the High Court, to try to have the plans stopped.
The Government hopes the announcement that thousands of asylum seekers will be relocated to large scale accommodation centres will act as a deterrent to those planning to enter the UK by irregular routes, like the use of small boats across the English Channel.
Rishi Sunak announced in December that the Government planned to stop using hotels to house migrants
PAIn August last year, the Home Office was forced to abandon similar plans to house asylum seekers at RAF Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire, after an outcry from local villagers and threats by the council to take legal action against the Government.
Other plans for large scale asylum centres at holiday camps and university campuses were also abandoned after similar protests.
As the number of suitable sites diminishes, the government seems determined to push ahead with its latest plans, despite the backlash from local residents.