![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/migrant-barge-portland-is-a-dumping-ground-residents-say/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/130014958_mediaitem130014957.jpg&description=Image source, PA Media Image caption, Portland Port was selected by the as a site for a migrant barge Portland in Dorset will be the first place in the country to house asylum seekers on a floating accommodation barge. The Bibby Stockholm was moved out of dry dock in Falmouth, Cornwall, last week after a refit to accommodate up to 500 single men for at least the next 18 months. It is expected to be towed to Portland in the coming days. The BBC's west of England correspondent Dan Johnson has been to see how people on the island are reacting to this new and controversial government policy. "They think Portland's a dumping ground," Charles Richards says. "They've dumped it here because they think we don't matter and they think we won't make a fuss. Portland has been treated with contempt." The 78-year-old has lived his entire life on the island. We settle on his garden wall overlooking the port where he worked for the Ministry of Defence (MoD), packing missiles. It seems everyone here is connected to the military or the prison service. "Portland has always been exploited," he continues. Image caption, Portlander Charles Richards believes Portland is thought of as a "dumping ground" "The stone firms exploited the land and dug great holes in it. The MoD exploited it to make fortifications and naval bases. The government used it for prisoners. We've had people dumped on us for a long time." Portland is one of those places on the edge, an extremity of England dangling from the Dorset coast by the fine thread of Chesil beach. I notice a sign in a neighbour's window: "Keep Portland weird." It only take 10 minutes to drive from end to end, but it is not insular and there's a sense this rugged, weather-beaten landscape bears more than its fair share of our national weight. Between the quarries that sent bright, white stone to face Buckingham Palace and St Paul's Cathedral sits His Majesty's Prison The Verne, home to 580 sex offenders - recently reported to include Gary Glitter){kind=link}
Portland in Dorset will be the first place in the country to house asylum seekers on a floating accommodation barge.
The Bibby Stockholm was moved out of dry dock in Falmouth, Cornwall, last week after a refit to accommodate up to 500 single men for at least the next 18 months. It is expected to be towed to Portland in the coming days.
The BBC’s west of England correspondent Dan Johnson has been to see how people on the island are reacting to this new and controversial government policy.
“They think Portland’s a dumping ground,” Charles Richards says.
“They’ve dumped it here because they think we don’t matter and they think we won’t make a fuss. Portland has been treated with contempt.”