Migrant barge to be closed

The contract for a barge which houses asylum seekers will not be renewed past January 2025, according to the Home Office.

Extending the use of the Bibby Stockholm, which is moored on Portland in Dorset, would have cost over £20 million next year.

The three-storey barge has capacity for up to 500 men, aged 18-65.

Now run under a Labour government, the Home Office said the move was part of a commitment to “clear the backlog and fix the asylum system”.