Government plans to house asylum seekers on board the Bibby Stockholm accommodation barge have come under fire from multiple sources, including the FBU.
Serious concerns have been raised about conditions aboard the vessel, which was initially designed to house 222 people but is now expected to take more than 500.
Carralyn Parkes, the mayor of Portland, said that the barge was “not a suitable place” to house asylum seekers. “Human beings belong in communities,” she added.
Most pertinent are the fire safety concerns. Now set to operate at more than double occupancy, the Bibby Stockholm has narrow corridors over three decks, with only two main exits. Local councillors have described the evacuation point as “completely inadequate” for the numbers involved.
Speaking to the Guardian newspaper, FBU assistant general secretary Ben Selby was blunt, saying that the barge was a “potential deathtrap”.
The FBU has publicly warned of serious fire safety concerns with such an increased occupancy rate and has written to Home Secretary Suella Braverman to demand a meeting.
In the letter, Ben Selby spelled out the union’s position: “The FBU believes fire safety standards are universal and apply to everyone,” he wrote. “These matters are both industrial and political. They matter because our members will be called upon in the event of an emergency.
Fire does not discriminate and therefore neither should safety regulations
“They also matter to us because fire and rescue is a humanitarian service, designed to protect everyone regardless of their circumstances or background. Fire does not discriminate and therefore neither should safety regulations.”
People housed on the Bibby Stockholm are applying for sanctuary in the UK on the basis that they are fleeing war, torture, persecution or other threats to their safety.
The government claims that the barge is a cheaper alternative to housing them in hotels, and says that the conditions aboard the barge will deter others from coming to the UK.
Human rights groups, fire safety experts and opposition parties of all stripes oppose the move.
The fire safety concerns for the Bibby Stockholm follow a wider watering down of regulations in recent months, with the government using its powers to exempt asylum seeker accommodation from the house in multiple occupation (HMO) licensing process.
The FBU has condemned this move as “callous and reckless”.
Asylum seekers began to be moved onto the Bibby Stockholm in early August. At the time of writing, the government had yet to respond to the FBU’s request for a meeting.
