Bibby Stockholm: Asylum seekers may be housed on barge from today – as government unveils new migration policy

Published

1 year ago

August 7, 2023

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Asylum seekers could start being housed on the Bibby Stockholm barge as soon as today as the government unveils a new crackdown on illegal migration.

About 50 people are expected to be in the first group of migrants to board the vessel docked in Portland Port, Dorset, despite local opposition.

The developments come as the government begins a so-called “small boats week” – with a series of announcements on the issue that Rishi Sunak has promised to solve.

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This includes a huge increase in fines for landlords and employers who house and give work to illegal immigrants.

The government is also considering reviving plans to fly people who arrive by unauthorised means 4,000 miles to Ascension Island in a bid to clear the asylum backlog and deter people from crossing the Channel, multiple reports on Monday suggested.

Safeguarding minister Sarah Dines would not confirm or deny this but told Sky News the government is looking at “all possibilities”.

She said the first occupants of Bibby Stockholm are expected to arrive “in the coming days”, describing the situation in the Channel as “urgent”.

The minister would not confirm an exact date for “operational” reasons, although Sky News understands 50 single males are set to move on board today.

The plan has faced weeks of delays amid safety concerns raised by the Fire Brigade Union, which has branded the site a “potential death trap”.

Inside the Bibby Stockholm barge

Defending the plan, Ms Dines said the barge “sends a forceful message that there will be proper accommodation but not luxurious”.

“Luxurious hotel accommodation has been part of the pull, I’m afraid,” she said.

“There have been promises made abroad by the organised criminal gangs and organisations which have tried to get people into the country unlawfully and they say, ‘You will be staying in a very nice hotel in the middle of a town in England’.

“That needs to stop and the barge is just one of a wide range of other measures.”

Govt ‘looking at all possibilities’

The Bibby Stockholm will ultimately house 500 asylum seekers, which Ms Dines later suggested could happen by the end of the week.

Asked about the Ascension Island reports, Ms Dines said the government is “looking at all possibilities”.

She told Sky News “times change” when asked why the plan was reportedly being reconsidered after seemingly being rejected by Boris Johnson’s former government.

“We look at all possibilities. This crisis in the Channel is urgent, we need to look at all possibilities and that is what we are doing.”

The proposals to use the British Overseas Territory are apparently being considered as a “plan B” if the Rwanda plan fails.

The controversial deportation scheme has been stalled by legal challenges that will end up in the Supreme Court.

Deep in the South Atlantic, Ascension Island could be used to house an asylum processing centre as an alternative attempt to reduce the number of small boats crossing the Channel – something Mr Sunak has staked his premiership on.

Government ‘completely failing’

On Monday it was announced civil penalties for employers will be increased up to a maximum of £45,000 per worker for a first breach and £60,000 for repeat offenders, tripling both from the last increase in 2014.

Landlords face fines going from £1,000 per occupier to £10,000, with repeat breaches going from £3,000 to £20,000. Penalties relating to lodgers will also be hiked.

But Labour said the measures would do nothing to deter people from crossing the Channel as it accused the government of “completely failing in this area”.

Shadow minister Nick Thomas-Symonds told Sky News: “They have 173,000 people now who are in the backlog in our asylum system. That’s the reason that they’ve ended up having to use hotels and (military) bases and now this barge.

“They are there because of their chronic failure.”

Politics

NHS league tables and cancelled pay rises for managers among government health reforms

Published

5 hours ago

November 13, 2024

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NHS league tables and cancelled pay rises for managers among government health reforms

NHS league tables revealing failing NHS trusts and cancelled pay rises or dismissal for managers who don’t turn things around are to form part of the government’s plans to improve the health service.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting is confirming new measures he hopes will boost failing hospital trusts and encourage successful ones.

The changes form part of the Labour government’s strategy to reduce waiting lists “from 18 months to 18 weeks”.

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Health and the state of the NHS were consistently among the most important issues for voters at this year’s general election – with Labour blaming the Conservatives for “breaking” it.

As health is a devolved area, any reforms proposed in Westminster would only apply to England.

Chief among Mr Streeting’s proposals is a “league table” for NHS trusts.

An announcement from the Department for Health and Social Care said: “NHS England will carry out a no-holds-barred sweeping review of NHS performance across the entire country, with providers to be placed into a league table.

“This will be made public and regularly updated to ensure leaders, policy-makers and patients know which improvements need to be prioritised.”

It also promises to replace “persistently failing managers” – with “turn around teams” being sent in to improve trusts running sizeable deficits or offering poor service to patients.

The government says “senior managers” who fail to make progress will not be eligible for pay rises.

There will be “financial implications” for more senior figures such as chief executives if their trust does not improve.

On the flip-side, those trusts that are deemed to be “high-performing” will get “greater freedom over funding and flexibility”.

Senior leaders at these trusts will also be “rewarded”.

The government says the current system is not incentivising trusts to run a budget surplus, as they cannot benefit from it.

Mr Streeting said: “The budget showed this government prioritises the NHS, providing the investment needed to rebuild the health service.

“Today we are announcing the reforms to make sure every penny of extra investment is well spent and cuts waiting times for patients.

“There’ll be no more turning a blind eye to failure. We will drive the health service to improve, so patients get more out of it for what taxpayers put in.

“Our health service must attract top talent, be far more transparent to the public who pay for it, and run as efficiently as global businesses.

“With the combination of investment and reform, we will turn the NHS around and cut waiting times from 18 months to 18 weeks.”

Concerns from health representatives

Amanda Pritchard, the chief executive of NHS England, said: “While NHS leaders welcome accountability, it is critical that responsibility comes with the necessary support and development.

“The extensive package of reforms, developed together with government, will empower all leaders working in the NHS and it will give them the tools they need to provide the best possible services for our patients.”

Further plans on how monitoring will be published by the start of the next financial year in April 2025, the government said.

Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation – a body that represents all NHS trusts – said healthcare leaders welcome the “government’s ambition”.

However, he said he was concerned league tables and reducing pay may “strip out” the nuance of what’s going on.

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Mr Taylor said: “NHS staff are doing their very best for patients under very challenging circumstances and we do not want them feeling like they are being named and shamed.

“League tables in themselves do not lead to improvement, trusts struggling with consistent performance issues – some of which reflect contextual issues such as underlying population heath and staff shortages – need to be identified and supported in order to recover.”