About Port
A port is a maritime facility which may comprise one or more wharves where ships may dock to load and discharge passengers and cargo. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, some ports, such as Hamburg, Manchester and Duluth, are many miles inland, with access to the sea via river or canal.
Bibby Stockholm: Asylum barge not a death trap, minister Grant Shapps says
... Cabinet minister Grant Shapps told rePorters there was no reason why the barge " wouldn t be absolutely safe"...
Migrant barge: Portland is a dumping ground, residents say
...By Dan JohnsonNews correspondentPortland in Dorset will be the first place in the country to house asylum seekers on a floating accommodation barge...
Relay theft: Mum's warning over criminals targeting keyless cars
... The motoring organisation is urging police to take action after Home Office figures revealed 130,389 cars were rePorted stolen in 2022 - an increase of 26% compared to the 104,435 rePorted in 2021...
Tobias Ellwood suspended as Tory MP after missing confidence vote
... " I am very sorry to lose the whip but will now continue my meetings in Ukraine promoting the prime minister s efforts here and specifically seeking to secure the reopening of Odesa Port - so vital grain exPorts can recommence...
Ukraine may soon get US long-range MLRS rocket system
... In an extra move to defend Ukraine s key Black Sea Port - Odesa - Denmark has supplied Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles, with a range of about 130km (70 nautical miles)...
Mariupol steelworks: Video appears to show children in Azovstal bunker
...Ukraine s Azov regiment has posted a video showing women and children purPortedly sheltering underground at the Azovstal plant - the last part of Mariupol not under Russian control...
Dover queues 'worst seen since Christmas 2020'
... " Generally, Operation Brock would deal with any incidents we have at the Port and at the tunnel and has been doing so, but this is probably the worst incident since Christmas 2020 when the French closed the borders and we couldn t release any traffic across the channel at all, " he said...
Martin Compston: From a school corridor to stardom
... Liam s attempts to raise money for the two of them are set against the backdrop of the Inverclyde towns of Greenock - where Compston is from - Port Glasgow and the coast at Gourock...
Bibby Stockholm: Asylum barge not a death trap, minister Grant Shapps says
By Peter Saull & Toby WadeyBBC News
A controversial Barge that Will House hundreds of asylum seekers is not a " death trap" a government minister says after fresh safety checks delayed The Arrival of its first inhabitants.
Cabinet minister Grant Shapps told reporters there was no reason why the Barge " wouldn't be absolutely safe".
The comments come after The Fire Brigades Union raised concerns about potential overcrowding and fire exits.
Asylum seekers are unlikely to move to the Bibby Stockholm until next week.
The Barge is a key part of the government's strategy to deter migrants from arriving on Britain's shores in small boats, and ministers say it will help cut the £6m-a-day cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels while claims are processed.
" It certainly won't be a death trap, " Mr Shapps said.
" This actual ship was previously used by Germany to house migrants, there's no reason why it wouldn't be absolutely safe.
" Ships are used to transport people all The Time and there's no inherent reason why that would be the case. That's actually why these final safety checks are being carried out. "
Some 50 migrants were expected to arrive on board the Vessel - moored at Dorset's Portland Port - on Tuesday, however The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said it was writing to the government after its members raised serious concerns about potential overcrowding and access to fire exits.
Ben Selby, the FBU's assistant General Secretary , told: " As the only professional voice, firefighters believe the Bibby Stockholm to be a potential death trap. "
A Home Office source said a late representation from the Health and Safety Executive to check working practices for Port staff was The Reason for the latest Delay - and not fire safety concerns.
Transport minister Richard Holden said on Tuesday he on when The Asylum seekers would start arriving.
Groups supporting The Asylum seekers, some of whom are staying at hotels in Bournemouth while They Wait to be moved, have called on the government to scrap the Barge plan altogether.
Enver Solomon , chief Executive of the Refugee Council, said there was no link between making The Asylum system " harder" and " stopping people wanting to come here".
" The Reason the government is having to use this Barge - and it is absolutely the wrong plan in the wrong place - is because it has grossly mismanaged The Asylum system, " he told BBC Radio 4 's Today programme.
" There is a backlog of 150,000 cases and if there wasn't that backlog the government wouldn't have to use ships. "
Tony Smith , former director general of UK Border Force , told The Bbc : " The bigger problem for me is the lack of returns or removals.
" We Are not really returning very many people at all so they know that if they run into a smuggler on The Beaches in France they know they are going to be told 'give us 5,000 euros' and you know once you are across, Bob's your Uncle - you are home and dry.
" So really we do need to get removals going. "
A Home Office spokesman said: " Delivering accommodation on surplus military sites and vessels will provide cheaper and more orderly, suitable accommodation for those arriving in small boats.
" The Bibby Stockholm is now undergoing final preparations to ensure it complies with all appropriate regulations before The Arrival of The First asylum seekers in The Coming weeks. "
Related TopicsSource of news: bbc.com
