12 December 2023 , 11:07
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An asylum seeker has died onboard the controversial Bibby Stockholm barge.
The tragedy happened this morning on the vessel docked in Portland, Dorset, which is being used by the Home Office to house up to 500 people. The circumstances of the death have yet to be confirmed, but sources on the barge believe the person took their own life.
No10 has said it will not be seeking to evacuate the barge as a result. Police were called to reports of a sudden death shortly after 6.20am.
As news of the incident broke, Labour MP Catherine West posted on Twitter: "Desperately sad & only days after Home Office removed people from my constituency to Bibby Stockholm with minutes to pack their things. This Government’s cruelty & scapegoating of asylum seekers is causing untold damage & shames the UK."
The tragedy was reported onboard the asylum barge this morning (PA)Police and ambulances rushed to the scene after the person was found, a source on the barge told ITV News. Addressing the tragedy, Home Secretary James Cleverly told MPs: "Tragically, there has been a death on the Bibby Stockholm barge. I'm sure that the thoughts of the whole House, like mine, are with those affected.
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"The House will understand that at this stage I am uncomfortable getting into any more details. But we will of course investigate fully."
Steve Smith, chief executive of refugee charity Care4Calais said he'd been told the person had taken their own life. Mr Smith said: "The UK Government must take responsibility for this human tragedy. They have wilfully ignored the trauma they are inflicting on people who are sent to the Bibby Stockholm, and the hundreds being accommodated in former military barracks."
He continued: "It’s time our political leaders treated them as human beings, listened to the trauma they have experienced and offered them sanctuary. The Government’s proxy-war against refugees is costing lives."
Ann Salter, of charity Freedom from Torture, said she was "devastated" by news of the death on the Bibby Stockholm. She said: "This latest tragedy is yet another reminder that the Government’s punitive anti-refugee policies are not only cruel, but they cost lives.
"From the survivors I work with every day, I know that the cramped and dangerous conditions on the Bibby can be profoundly retraumatising for those who’ve survived torture and persecution, in addition to traumatic experiences they’ve suffered en route to the UK."
Police were called to the Bibby Stockholm shortly after 6.20am (Getty Images)Naomi Smith, chief executive of campaign group Best for Britain, wrote: "This is incredibly sad and worrying. I hope the authorities will be doing all they can to ensure there are no other fatalities on board this vile vessel."
Back in August The Guardian reported 39 people who were briefly moved to the barge wrote to then-Home Secretary Suella Braverman saying conditions were so bad that one had attempted suicide. They described the Bibby Stockholm as "an unsafe, frightening and isolated place”.
Moments after the news broke Labour leader Keir Starmer, giving a speech in Buckinghamshire, said: "I'm afraid I just haven't seen this breaking news I don't know the details but obviously my heart goes to the family and friends of the individual who's lost their life."
Labour's Bell Ribeiro-Addy posted: "Someone has lost their life on the Bibby Stockholm barge. It's unacceptable that the Government continues to house people who have fled some of the world’s worst horrors in these conditions. This is where their disgraceful Rwanda deportation plan ultimately leads."
The megabarge was evacuated in August after deadly legionella bacteria was found onboard, but in October the Home Office began moving people back onto the 500-capacity vessel.
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The Government has been heavily criticised for housing people in barges in a desperate bid to drive down accomodation costs due to the UK's massive asylum backlog.
A Home Office spokesman said:“This is a tragic incident, and our thoughts are with everyone affected. The welfare of all those in our care is of the utmost importance, and we take our responsibility for their wellbeing incredibly seriously.
“This will now be investigated by the police and coroner. It is right that the facts and circumstances surrounding this death are established.”
A statement from Dorset Police said: "At 6.22am on Tuesday 12 December 2023, Dorset Police received a report of a sudden death of a resident on the Bibby Stockholm. Officers are conducting enquiries into the circumstances of the incident. The coroner’s office has been notified of the death."