Migrant barge residents describe circumstances like ‘getting into Alcatraz’

Asylum seekers shifting onto the Bibby Stockholm migrant boat have likened the circumstances to the infamous Alcatraz jail.

The boat, situated at Portland in Dorset, has room to accommodate as much as 500 individuals. But one of many first individuals to maneuver onto it told the BBC it felt like a jail.

The Home Office nevertheless says the barge will present higher worth for the general public purse. It comes because the variety of small boats arriving on the British coast continues to develop.

The Bibby Stockholm is the primary barge secured below Rishi Sunak’s plan to scale back the price of asylum seekers. The first 15 individuals moved onto the barge on Monday, after a sequence of delayed associated to security/

The boat will home males aged between 18 and 65. They will likely be there whereas their immigration purposes are processed by the Home Office.

An Afghan asylum seeker has now opened as much as the BBC about how he discovered the barge. He stated: “The sound of locks and security checks gives me the feeling of entering Alcatraz prison.

“My roommate panicked in the midst of the evening and felt like he was drowning. There are individuals amongst us who’ve been given heavy medication for melancholy by the physician right here.”

He claimed they have each been given a small room. The man also believes the dining area has room for fewer than 150 people at a time.

The barge has 24/7 security in place with each resident issued with ID swipe cards. They have to pass through airport-style security scans to get on and off the boat.

Due to security reasons, a shuttle bus takes asylum seekers the port exit. There is no curfew, however is they are not back there will be a “welfare name”.

The Home Office has said it would support their welfare by providing basic healthcare, organised activities and recreation. With 15 people already housed on the Bibby Stockholm, the Care4Calais charity says it is supporting another 15 who refused to move to Portland.

On Tuesday, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Griffiths, said that moving to the barge was “not a selection” and if people choose not to comply “they are going to be taken outdoors of the asylum help system”.

The asylum seeker told the BBC a majority of the people currently housed on the barge arrived by aeroplane instead. He claims a majority applied for asylum on arrival.

He says two weeks ago they received letters saying their access to the NHS would be cut off.

Another man said he arrived from Iran by aircraft six months ago. He said he had eaten a “good” breafast on the barge, which included “eggs, cheese, jam and butter”.

The government says it is spending £6m per day housing more than 50,000 migrants in hotels. A Home Office spokesperson said: “This marks an additional step ahead within the authorities’s work to convey ahead different lodging choices as a part of its pledge to scale back the usage of costly motels and transfer to a extra orderly, sustainable system which is extra manageable for native communities.”