Dear Suella Braverman,
We, the undersigned, are writing to express deep concern about the proposal to house asylum-seekers arriving to the UK on the barge ‘Bibby Stockholm’ as of July 2023.
For many asylum-seekers arriving in the UK, the sea represents a site of significant trauma as they have been forced to cross it on one or multiple occasions. Housing asylum seekers on a sea barge – which we believe is equal to a floating prison – threatens to retraumatise a group of already vulnerable people.
As we understand it, the barge is currently being modified to increase its capacity from 220 to 500, which means people will be tightly packed into rooms with no privacy and little ability to move freely. Conservative MP Richard Drax has himself expressed concerns about unanswered questions such as how asylum seekers will be able to come and go safely through the port, what activities they will be provided with and how sufficient healthcare will be ensured.
When the Bibby Stockholm was used by the Dutch government to detain migrants in the 2000s, it is reported that one person died, and there were cases of rape and abuse onboard.
It is without question that this is an inappropriate solution – morally, ethically, and logistically – for the question of where to house asylum-seekers upon arrival to the UK.
As the refurbishment works have not yet begun, we urge you to reconsider this decision and to establish a working group consisting of MPs, housing experts, trauma experts and civil society actors to move forward on establishing an appropriate solution for asylum-seekers’ accommodation.
Yours sincerely,
Organisations:
- Reclaim The Sea C.I.C
- Channel Rescue
- The Game Plan
- The Worldwide Tribe
- Bees & Refugees
- Phone Credit For Refugees
- Anti-Raids Plymouth
- Refugee Legal Support (RLS)
- International Surf Therapy Organization
- Falmouth and Penryn Welcome Refugee Families
- Surf Therapy C.I.C
- Free Humanitarians
- Napier Friends
Individuals:
- Tigs Louis-Puttick
- Rebecca van der Veer
- Flo Gregory
- Ella Nevill
- Miyka Porcelli
- Pauline Fritz
- Laurence Louis-Puttick
- Kate Vogiatzis
- Alexandra Becker
- Annie Molloy
- Steven Martin
- Christian Algar
- Layla Mackie
- Marine Coullard
- Izzy Riley
- Elizabeth Moreton
- Stephen Moreton
- Amy Kenealy
- Bernie Moreton
- James Moreton
- Chantel Yasmin Wheatley
- Ben Brondesma
- Connor Mower
- Paolo Peluso
- Jasmine O’Hara
- Emily Holmes
- Rachel Bowen
- Jasmin Dorinda
- Martha Nash
- Dani Green
- Tom Brine
- Daisy Taylor
- Magda Cienciala
- Chelsey King
- Rebecca Annells
- Rebecca Seabrook
- Olivia Brodie-Stuart
- Owen Robinson
- Sahar Seidl
- Darya Laris
- Iona Kerr
- Georgia Howton
- George Colville
- Roseanna Freiburghaus
- Oliver Mackie
- Katherine Schimmel
- Finn Chapman
- Ciara Lithgow
- Anaëlle Ménage
- Ali Alzein
- Hondee Gongolo
- Mariana Vale
- Declan Onley
- Arkan Asaad Houssini
- Wren du Plessis
- Joey Swan
- Beck Rouse
- Zazie Schilke
- Vanessa Van Kleef
- Megan Lindsay
- Ilse de Wit
- Georgie Ambrose
- Cordelia Roberts
- Abigail Cooper
- Jenny Thompson
- Ellie Murphy
- Lize Gibson-Hall
- Kirsty Matthews Nicholass
- Eleanor Gilbert
- Maxime Laigasse
- Olivia Mantoura
- Fauzi Mantoura
- Sarah Layton
- Rosi Reusing
- Ffion Denman
- Ben Galvin
- Olivia Elwood
- Emelie Aichholzer
- Sophie Ferch
- Harry Scott
- Efi Stathopoulou
- Eloise Levien
- Phil Owen
- Harris King
- Belle Heaton
- Maayan Halevi
- Eliza Sherlock
- Stephanie Wells
- Rhea Dhingra
- David Starley
- Heather Shimmer
- Emily Roach Osborne
- Linzi Hawkin
- Carolina Salgueiro Pereira
- Kate Flanagan
- Michaela Robinson
- Linsey Walklin
- Ruth Cooper-Haime
- Maxine Canvin
- Tom Pugh-Jones
- Thomas Appleton
- Orla Renton
- Kris Primacio
- Anja Kurtz
- Olivia Cash
- Melaine Le Bars
- Adrienne Humphreys
- Maximilian Kratz
- Ellen Harrison
- Rachel Zanetti
- Katherine Kirkham
- Alessia Zancan
- Sara Bartosova
- Martina Burtscher
- Bella Biddle
- Dee Hall
- Elèna Santioli
- Ella Witt
