A barge which will house 500 asylum seekers is on the move, with the first residents expected to board later this month.
The barge – named the Bibby Stockholm – departed from Falmouth, Cornwall, to head to Portland Port in Dorset on Monday morning as Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman faced fresh criticism over the Illegal Migration Bill.
The bill, which is part of a package of measures to deter migrants from crossing the channel, has faced fierce opposition in the House of Lords numerous times.
Members want further concessions in the bill on limits to the detention of children, modern slavery protections and the provision of safe and legal routes for refugees to the UK.
Meanwhile, outside the Home Office, comedian Dom Joly led a Save the Children protest while dressed as Mickey Mouse and holding a placard that read “stop child detention”.
It came after ministers faced criticism over a decision to paint over “welcoming” murals of Disney characters, including Mickey Mouse and Baloo from The Jungle Book, at a migrant reception centre in Kent.
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Despite criticism, Rishi Sunak defended the use of barges as a “better” way to house migrants, in a message to the people of Portland who are against it being moored there.
“I think it’s right for the public as a whole that we move away from a situation where £6m a day of taxpayers’ money is going towards housing these individuals in hotels,” the prime minister said.
“We think it is better to open specific sites designed to house immigrants that come in, done in a more planned way.”
Dorset Council has been given £2m in a funding package to meet the cost of providing services to residents.
The move of the three-storey vessel is already a month behind schedule, after Ms Braverman told MPs that the vessel would be in Portland within a fortnight on 5 June.
Image: Facilities inside the Bibby Stockholm
The 222-bedroom vessel contains “basic” accommodation, with healthcare provision, catering facilities and 24/7 security, at a reported cost of £20,000 a day, the Home Office said back in May.
In addition to the Bibby Stockholm, the government is seeking to use former military bases to house asylum seekers.
Braintree District Council and a nearby resident are bringing legal action to challenge the use of Wethersfield in Essex to house up to 1,700 men, while West Lindsey District Council is challenging similar plans for RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire.
Lucy Powell has accused Bridget Phillipson’s team of “throwing mud” and briefing against her in the Labour deputy leadership race in a special episode of Sky’s Electoral Dysfunction podcast.
With just days to go until the race is decided, Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby spoke to the two leadership rivals about allegations of leaks, questions of party unity and their political vision.
Ms Powell told Electoral Dysfunction that through the course of the contest, she had “never leaked or briefed”.
But she said of negative stories about her in the media: “I think some of these things have also come from my opponent’s team as well. And I think they need calling out.
“We are two strong women standing in this contest. We’ve both got different things to bring to the job. I’m not going to get into the business of smearing and briefing against Bridget.
“Having us airing our dirty washing, throwing mud – both in this campaign or indeed after this if I get elected as deputy leader – that is not the game that I’m in.”
Ms Powell was responding to a “Labour source” who told the New Statesman last week:“Lucy was sacked from cabinet because she couldn’t be trusted not to brief or leak.”
Ms Powell said she had spoken directly to Ms Phillipson about allegations of briefings “a little bit”.
Image: Bridget Phillipson (l) and Lucy Powell (r) spoke to Sky News’ Beth Rigby in a special Electoral Dysfunction double-header. Pics: Reuters
Phillipson denies leaks
But asked separately if her team had briefed against Ms Powell, Ms Phillipson told Rigby: “Not to my knowledge.”
And Ms Phillipson said she had not spoken “directly” to her opponent about the claims of negative briefings, despite Ms Powell saying the pair had talked about it.
“I don’t know if there’s been any discussion between the teams,” she added.
On the race itself, the education secretary said it would be “destabilising” if Ms Powell is elected, as she is no longer in the cabinet.
“I think there is a risk that comes of airing too much disagreement in public at a time when we need to focus on taking the fight to our opponents.
“I know Lucy would reject that, but I think that is for me a key choice that members are facing.”
She added: “It’s about the principle of having that rule outside of government that risks being the problem. I think I’ll be able to get more done in government.”
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But Ms Powell, who was recently sacked by Sir Keir Starmer as leader of the Commons, said she could “provide a stronger, more independent voice”.
“The party is withering on the vine at the same time, and people have got big jobs in government to do.
“Politics is moving really, really fast. Government is very, very slow. And I think having a full-time political deputy leader right now is the political injection we need.”
The result of the contest will be announced on Saturday 25 October.
The deputy leader has the potential to be a powerful and influential figure as the link between members and the parliamentary Labour Party, and will have a key role in election campaigns. They can’t be sacked by Sir Keir as they have their own mandate.
The contest was triggered by the resignation of Angela Rayner following a row over her tax affairs. She was also the deputy prime minister but this position was filled by David Lammy in a wider cabinet reshuffle.