PD Ports says migrant barge at Teesport ‘would not be viable’ as groups say no to ‘floating prison’

Refugee groups have hit back at plans to house migrants in a “floating prison” at Teesport.

Reports surfaced earlier this month that a giant barge, which would be moored at Teesport, could be used to house asylum seekers after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced two vessels had been purchased to take in up to 1,000 migrants.

Local refugee groups, councillors and residents have now signed an open letter calling on PD Ports, which is the Statutory Harbour Authority on the River Tees and runs Teesport, to refuse to take part in the plans. They claim the “floating prison” would re-traumatise people fleeing war and persecution.

READ MORE: Teesside politicians speak out after reports migrant barge could be moored at Teesport

PD Ports confirmed it has still not received any communication from the government about the barge. It added that it “simply would not be viable to facilitate any such accommodation” to to the nature of it being “in constant operation.”

The controversial plans come as part of the UK’s ‘stop the boat’ policy, which was introduced back in March and means that anyone who enters the UK illegally and who has passed through a safe country will be legally required to be removed. The first barge will be moored off Portland, in Dorset.

Teesside Live previously reported that the Home Office would not confirm whether reports of the vessel at Teesport were true, instead stating that alternative sites and vessels were being sought to accommodate migrants in response to the mounting pressures that face the asylum system in the UK.

The Tees Valley Combined Authority previously said it had not been contacted by the government over this issue.

The Guardian previously reported that the potential sites for the barges included Wirral Waters, near Liverpool, and Teesport. The Liverpool Echo said reports suggested that plans to house the asylum seekers in a barge on Mersey were scrapped, following protestors and politicians condemning the plans.

MPs, residents, and council leaders sign letter

Cllr Alex Brown, Redcar and Cleveland Council leader, Middlesbrough Labour MP Andy McDonald, Bishop of Middlesbrough Terence Drainey, trade union representatives and 70 residents from across the region all signed the letter, which stated that it is “imperative” that no deal is done.

The letter argues that people should not be “warehoused in barges or ships” and should instead be “able to live as members of our communities while they wait for a decision on their asylum claim.”

Signatories have warned that the use of similar facilities in other countries has resulted in human rights violations and humanitarian crises. Incidents noted include a typhoid outbreak and reports of mistreatment and deaths on ships in the Netherlands.

Anna Lewis, CEO of Open Door North East, said: “We are consistently bewildered by the inhumane lengths the Home Office is prepared to go to in order to distract the public from its own catalogue of failures in asylum policy.

“The housing of hundreds of people in cramped and unsuitable accommodation on the shores of Teesside is cruel, unworkable, and would cause serious harm to people already experiencing significant trauma and suffering.”

An employee of PD who has signed the joint letter said: “I just think it’s highly inappropriate to have people staying on a ship or raft. The Government should be finding or building appropriate places for asylum seekers. This is just a political choice to dehumanise people who are fleeing hardship and death in other countries.”

Jennifer Laws, campaigns manager at Asylum Matters said: “People across Teesside are urging PD Ports to utterly reject any proposal to create floating prisons on the Tees. People seeking asylum belong in communities, not warehoused in military camps or barges.

“Government incompetence has allowed a massive backlog to build up within the asylum system. It should focus its resources and time sorting out its ability to perform basic administration, dropping punitive measures and giving people seeking safety swift, fair decisions on their asylum claims.”

PD Ports say accommodation ‘would not be viable’

A spokesperson for PD Ports said: “To date, PD Ports has not received any communication from the Government about the potential for a barge to be docked at Teesport, either as the operator of our own commercial operations, or in our role as Statutory Harbour Authority.

“We cannot see a situation in which public services would be able to provide the appropriate support for such accommodation. It simply would not be viable to facilitate any such accommodation to dock at one of our berths, which are in constant operation and have heavily restricted access for health and safety reasons.”