The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) sent a letter to the home secretary last weekend outlining "serious fire and operational safety concerns" over the Bibby Stockholm, which is docked in Portland, Dorset.
This month the Home Office was forced to remove the first 39 people from the barge only days after they had arrived because potentially deadly legionella bacteria was identified onboard.
The union is demanding a response to its legal letter by Thursday and asks that no asylum seekers be returned to the barge until its concerns have been addressed. Ministers intend to house 506 single men on the 220-bedroom vessel while their asylum applications are processed. The three-storey barge, chartered by the government for 18 months, arrived at Portland in July.
The Home Office is already facing a legal challenge from the Labour mayor of Portland, Carralyn Parkes, for failing to get planning permission to use the Dorset dock. She is crowdfunding her challenge, which is being carried out in a personal capacity.
The FBU's "pre-action protocol" letter claims that the Home Office has failed to arrange fire drills for asylum seekers or adequate risk assessments of the barge, despite more than doubling the number of planned occupants in the midst of threats of attacks from far-right activists.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 28, 2023 من The Guardian.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 28, 2023 من The Guardian.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
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