‘Ludicrous’ asylum barges plan ruled out by Treasury when Rishi Sunak was chancellor

The use of barges and cruise ships to house asylum seekers was ruled out by the Treasury while Rishi Sunak was chancellor, The Independent has learned. After Conservative MP Richard Drax told parliament the move should be “totally out of the question” and would “exacerbate tenfold” the issues seen in asylum hotels, Mr Jenrick insisted he “sees merit” in the use of large vessels and that they would “provide good value for money and decent accomodation”. “These will be scaled up over the coming months and will collectively provide accommodation to several thousand asylum seekers through re-purposed barrack blocks and portacabins.” open image in gallery The Treasury ruled out the barges plan on cost grounds when Rishi Sunak was chancellor Priti Patel, the former home secretary, told parliament that the New Plan for Immigration drawn up by Boris Johnson’s government had suggested the creation of “Greek-style reception centres” that were not set up. Mr Jenrick said the prime minister was “showing leadership” by allowing the Catterick Garrison barracks in his constituency to be used for asylum seekers, although The Independent understands he previously vetoed the proposal. He added: “We continue exploring the possibility of accommodating migrants in vessels as in Scotland and the Netherlands.” In a report published earlier on Wednesday, the Independent Commission for Aid Impact found that the Home Office’s failure to address a “critical shortage” of accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers, driven by its record asylum backlog as well as rising Channel crossings, was driving costly spending on hotels.