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The home secretary is facing fresh pressure to scrap plans to house asylum seekers on barges after Legionella bacteria was discovered in the water supply of the Bibby Stockholm.

The Home Office removed all 39 migrants from the vessel in Dorset on Friday, in the latest embarrassing setback to a policy that has been beset with controversy and delay from the very start.

The removal came less than a week after the first migrants were transferred onto the barge – though legal challenges granted some a last-minute reprieve from having to board.

Rival protesters argue in Portland in Dorset after the Bibby Stockholm accommodation barge arrived from dry dock in Falmouth, Cornwall, where it is due to house migrants. Picture date: Tuesday July 18, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story POLITICS Migrants. Photo credit should read: Ben Birchall/PA Wire

Care4Calais, which said it stopped 20 migrants from being moved onto the floating accommodation on Monday, said the discovery of bacteria shows their “concerns over the health and safety of the barge are justified” as they called on ministers to axe the policy.

Steve Smith, chief executive of the charity, said: “The Bibby Stockholm is a visual illustration of this government’s hostile environment against refugees, but it has also fast become a symbol for the shambolic incompetence which has broken Britain’s asylum system.

“The government should now realise warehousing refugees in this manner is completely untenable, and should focus on the real job at hand – processing the asylum claims swiftly, so refugees may become contributing members of our communities as they so strongly wish.”

Legionella bacteria, which is commonly found in water, can cause a serious type of lung infection known as Legionnaires’ disease.

More on Bibby Stockholm

None of those on the barge have shown signs of having the disease and are all being provided with a health assessment, the Home Office said.

It was not clear where the migrants would be moved to on Friday night.

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Inside the Bibby Stockholm barge

Putting them in hotels would likely cause fresh embarrassment for the government, which procured the barge alongside other budget sites in an effort to reduce the £6m-a-day cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels.

The Home Office insisted disembarking those on board was a “precautionary measure” while further tests are carried out – but questions remain about who knew what and when.

Sky News understands routine testing of the water supply was initially carried out on Tuesday 25 July but the results did not come back until Monday 7 August – the same day asylum seekers began to board the Bibby Stockholm, which is docked in Portland Port.

However the Home Office was not made aware of the results until two days later on Wednesday 9 August. Six people boarded the vessel a day later but were later removed on the advice of the UK Health Security Agency, with a decision taken on Friday to remove everyone.

What is Legionnaires’ disease?

Caused by the bacteria legionella – found in the water on the Bibby Stockholm – Legionnaires’ disease is a lung infection that is uncommon but can have serious consequences.

The disease is contracted by breathing in tiny droplets of water containing the bacteria.

It is usually found in places like hotels, offices and hospitals where the bacteria has entered the water supply.

Air conditioning systems, humidifiers and pools or hot tubs are common places where people contract Legionnaires’ disease. People are far less likely to contract the disease by drinking water or in their homes.

The symptoms include a cough, shortness of breath, high temperatures, chest pain and flu-like symptoms.

Labour’s shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said it was “extraordinary” that it appeared proper checks had not taken place before migrants were moved on board.

“It’s absolutely right that the barge has to be evacuated but what a complete and utter shambles. This is a catalogue of catastrophe and government ministers should hang their heads in shame,” he told Sky News.

He said the government would not need to use “barges, hotels or military bases” if they tackled the backlog in the asylum system which has reached more than 173,000 – outstripping the 50,000 units he said were in the UK’s asylum estate.

He called the Bibby Stockholm “a floating symbol of Conservative incompetence”.

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Jenrick: Barge is ‘perfectly decent’

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick was understood to be chairing meetings about the situation on Friday.

But one campaign group, No to the Barge, said Mr Jenrick should stand down from his government position with “immediate effect” after promising just days ago the Bibby Stockholm was safe.

On Wednesday, he told Sky News the barge was “perfectly decent accommodation”, despite earlier warnings from the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) that the vessel was a potential “death trap”.

The union reiterated its position in the wake of the latest development as they accused the government of ignoring their concerns.

Assistant general secretary Ben Selby said: “We wrote to Suella Braverman more than a week ago to demand a meeting to discuss these issues. We have had no response to that letter, and our fire safety and operational safety concerns remain.

“It remains our professional view that it’s a potential ‘death trap’ and an accident waiting to happen.

“However, Suella Braverman and her ministerial colleagues are hellbent on confining vulnerable people in jail like conditions on what is effectively a prison ship.”

Suella Braverman
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Suella Braverman is facing pressure to axe the plan to house migrants on barges

It comes at the end of the government’s “small boats week” which was supposed to highlight new hardline policies for stopping Channel crossings.

The announcements were somewhat overshadowed by a row involving Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson saying asylum seekers who don’t like barges should “f*** off back to France” and later admitting the government had “failed” to tackle illegal immigration.

Tory figures were largely silent on Friday night, though one unnamed senior figure was quoted in the i newspaper calling for Ms Braverman to go.

Scott Benton, a former Conservative MP who now sits as an independent, tweeted that the Bibby Stockholm had become a “complete and utter farce” – adding: “As if having porous borders isn’t bad enough, we can’t even move 39 illegal immigrants onto a barge properly.”

Mr Sunak has made “stopping the boats” one of his five key priorities in government.

However, he faced a further blow this week after 775 people were recorded crossing the English Channel on Thursday – the highest daily number so far this year.

It pushed the cumulative total of the number of people who made small boat journeys from France to the UK to more than 100,000 since 2018, when records began.

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‘Shameful’ that black boys in London more likely to die than white boys, says Met Police chief

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Justice system 'frustrating', Met Police chief says - as he admits London's 'shameful' racism challenge

It is “shameful” that black boys growing up in London are “far more likely” to die than white boys, Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley has told Sky News.

In a wide-ranging interview with Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, the commissioner said that relations with minority communities are “difficult for us”, while also speaking about the state of the justice system and the size of the police force.

Sir Mark, who came out of retirement to become head of the UK’s largest police force in 2022, said: “We can’t pretend otherwise that we’ve got a history between policing and black communities where policing has got a lot wrong.

“And we get a lot more right today, but we do still make mistakes. That’s not in doubt. I’m being as relentless in that as it can be.”

He said the “vast majority” of the force are “good people”.

However, he added: “But that legacy, combined with the tragedy that some of this crime falls most heavily in black communities, that creates a real problem because the legacy creates concern.”

Sir Mark, who also leads the UK’s counter-terrorism policing, said black boys growing up in London “are far more likely to be dead by the time they’re 18” than white boys.

“That’s, I think, shameful for the city,” he admitted.

“The challenge for us is, as we reach in to tackle those issues, that confrontation that comes from that reaching in, whether it’s stop and search on the streets or the sort of operations you seek.

“The danger is that’s landing in an environment with less trust.

“And that makes it even harder. But the people who win out of that [are] all of the criminals.”

Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said racism is still an issue in the force
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Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley

The commissioner added: “I’m so determined to find a way to get past this because if policing in black communities can find a way to confront these issues, together we can give black boys growing up in London equal life chances to white boys, which is not what we’re seeing at the moment.

“And it’s not simply about policing, is it?”

Sir Mark said: “I think black boys are several times more likely to be excluded from school, for example, than white boys.

“And there are multiple issues layered on top of each other that feed into disproportionality.”

‘We’re stretched, but there’s hope and determination’

Sir Mark said the Met is a “stretched service” but people who call 999 can expect an officer to attend.

“If you are in the middle of the crisis and something awful is happening and you dial 999, officers will get there really quickly,” Sir Mark said.

“I don’t pretend we’re not a stretched service.

“We are smaller than I think we ought to be, but I don’t want to give a sort of message of a lack of hope or a lack of determination.”

“I’ve seen the mayor and the home secretary fighting hard for police resourcing,” he added.

“It’s not what I’d want it to be, but it’s better than it might be without their efforts.”

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How police tracked and chased suspected phone thief

‘Close to broken’ justice system ‘frustrating’ and ‘stressed’

Sir Mark said the criminal justice system was “close to broken” and can be “frustrating” for others.

“The thing that is frustrating is that the system – and no system can be perfect – but when the system hasn’t managed to turn that person’s life around and get them on the straight and narrow, and it just becomes a revolving door,” he said.

“When that happens, of course that’s frustrating for officers.

“So the more successful prisons and probation can be in terms of getting people onto a law-abiding life from the path they’re on, the better.

“But that is a real challenge. I mean, we’re talking just after Sir Brian Leveson put his report out about the close-to-broken criminal justice system.

“And it’s absolutely vital that those repairs and reforms that he’s talking about happen really quickly, because the system is now so stressed.”

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Leveson explains plans to fix justice system

Challenge to reform the Met

The Met chief’s comments come two years after an official report found the force is institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic.

Baroness Casey was commissioned in 2021 to look into the Met Police after serving police officer Wayne Couzens abducted, raped and murdered Sarah Everard.

She pinned the primary blame for the Met’s culture on its past leadership and found stop and search and the use of force against black people was excessive.

At the time, Sir Mark, who had been commissioner for six months when the report was published, said he would not use the labels of institutionally racist, institutionally misogynistic and institutionally homophobic, which Baroness Casey insisted the Met deserved.

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However, London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who helped hire Sir Mark – and could fire him – made it clear the commissioner agreed with Baroness Casey’s verdict.

A few months after the report, Sir Mark launched a two-year £366m plan to overhaul the Met, including increased emphasis on neighbourhood policing to rebuild public trust and plans to recruit 500 more community support officers and an extra 565 people to work with teams investigating domestic violence, sexual offences and child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Watch the full interview on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips from 8.30am on Sunday.

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Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner over Birmingham bin strike

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Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner over Birmingham bin strike

Labour’s largest union donor, Unite, has voted to suspend Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner over her role in the Birmingham bin strike row.

Members of the trade union, one of the UK’s largest, also “overwhelmingly” voted to “re-examine its relationship” with Labour over the issue.

They said Ms Rayner, who is also housing, communities and local government secretary, Birmingham Council’s leader, John Cotton, and other Labour councillors had been suspended for “bringing the union into disrepute”.

There was confusion over Ms Rayner’s membership of Unite, with her office having said she was no longer a member and resigned months ago and therefore could not be suspended.

But Unite said she was registered as a member. Parliament’s latest register of interests had her down as a member in May.

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The union said an emergency motion was put to members at its policy conference in Brighton on Friday.

More on Angela Rayner

Unite is one of the Labour Party’s largest union donors, donating £414,610 in the first quarter of 2025 – the highest amount in that period by a union, company or individual.

The union condemned Birmingham’s Labour council and the government for “attacking the bin workers”.

Mountains of rubbish have been piling up in the city since January after workers first went on strike over changes to their pay, with all-out strike action starting in March. An agreement has still not been made.

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Rat catcher tackling Birmingham’s bins problem

Ms Rayner and the councillors had their membership suspended for “effectively firing and rehiring the workers, who are striking over pay cuts of up to £8,000”, the union added.

‘Missing in action’

General secretary Sharon Graham told Sky News on Saturday morning: “Angela Rayner, who has the power to solve this dispute, has been missing in action, has not been involved, is refusing to come to the table.”

She had earlier said: “Unite is crystal clear, it will call out bad employers regardless of the colour of their rosette.

“Angela Rayner has had every opportunity to intervene and resolve this dispute but has instead backed a rogue council that has peddled lies and smeared its workers fighting huge pay cuts.

“The disgraceful actions of the government and a so-called Labour council, is essentially fire and rehire and makes a joke of the Employment Relations Act promises.

“People up and down the country are asking whose side is the Labour government on and coming up with the answer not workers.”

SN pics from 10/04/25 Tyseley Lane, Tyseley, Birmingham showing some rubbish piling up because of bin strikes
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Piles of rubbish built up around Birmingham because of the strike over pay

Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman said the government’s “priority is and always has been the residents of Birmingham”.

He said the decision by Unite workers to go on strike had “caused disruption” to the city.

“We’ve worked to clean up streets and remain in close contact with the council […] as we support its recovery,” he added.

A total of 800 Unite delegates voted on the motion.

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Dozens of MPs call for UK government to recognise Palestine as state

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Dozens of MPs call for UK government to recognise Palestine as state

Nearly 60 Labour MPs have called on David Lammy and the Foreign Office to immediately recognise Palestine as a state.

A mix of centrist and left-wing MPs, including some committee chairs, wrote to the foreign secretary this week to say “by not recognising [Palestine] as a state, we undermine our own policy of a two-state solution and set an expectation that the status quo can continue and see the effective erasure and annexation of Palestinian territory”.

The 59 MPs suggest the government pursue five different measures to prevent the Israeli government from carrying out its Rafah plan, adding that they believed Gaza was being “ethnically cleansed” – a claim vehemently denied by Israel.

The letter was organised by Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East group.

Palestinians react as they ask for food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, July 7, 2025. REUTERS/Ebrahim Hajjaj
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Palestinians ask for food from a charity kitchen in Gaza on 7 July. Pic: Reuters

It states that the Israeli plan, which would see the “population transfer to the southern tip of Gaza in preparation for deportation outside the strip”, is an accurate description, but that they believe a clearer way to describe it is the “ethnic cleansing of Gaza”.

Israeli officials have said they want to separate the civilian population from Hamas, which still controls parts of Gaza and holds dozens of hostages abducted in the October 7 attack that triggered the war 21 months ago.

Emmanuel Macron discussed recognising Palestine as a state at a joint news conference with Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday – the same day the letter was signed.

The French president said: “Today, working together in order to recognise the state of Palestine and to initiate this political momentum is the only path to peace.”

While France has not yet recognised a Palestinian state yet, Norway, Ireland and Spain coordinated their recognition last year.

The letter demands ministers take five different measures to:

• Recognise the state of Palestine
• Continue support for the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA)
• Secure the release of hostages
• Press for the full and unhindered resumption of humanitarian aid
• Fully review and place restrictions on trade with and financial support of illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank

The government says it is already providing funding for the UNRWA and working to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas, but immediate recognition of Palestinian statehood will be a much more controversial move.

Sky News understands this is the second time MPs have formally called on the government to immediately recognise the state of Palestine, with previous letters signed by some parliamentary aides and even junior ministers.

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Ministers have indicated their plan to recognise Palestine would be “at a time that is most conducive to the peace process” without further clarity of when that might be.

They have also indicated that it would not be suitable to speculate about future sanctions, as this could reduce their impact.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “Since day one, this government has been clear that we need to see an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages cruelly detained by Hamas, better protection of civilians, much-needed food aid, medicines, shelter and other supplies immediately being allowed to enter Gaza, and a path to long-term peace and stability.

“The situation on the ground in Gaza is horrendous – for the hostages and for Palestinians – and we urgently want to see a deal done, to end the suffering on all sides.

“We are committed to recognising a Palestinian state and to doing so when will have most impact in support of a peace process. We continue to provide lifesaving aid to supporting Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and to work closely in support of the Palestinian Authority.”

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