Asylum seekers are being notified that they will be sent back to a migrant barge, which was closed after legionella bacteria was detected.
In a statement, the Home Office said asylum seekers would return to the Bibby Stockholm in Portland ‘following the vessel completing all necessary tests’.
The 222-room barge, berthed at the port in Dorset, is intended to hold about 500 men while they await the outcome of their asylum applications.
In August, thirty-nine men were moved onto the barge but were removed after just three days when Legionella bacteria, which can cause the serious lung infection Legionnaires' disease, was detected in its water supply.
The BBC said asylum seekers have been told that the accommodation ‘is offered on a no-choice basis’.
The Home Office said it would work with Dorset Council and other local health partners to ensure health and safety protocols were followed.
Yesterday, Portland mayor Carralyn Parkes brought legal action to the High Court, arguing that residents should have been consulted over the use of the barge.
She has also said housing asylum seekers on the Bibby Stockholm was an ‘inhumane way to treat those fleeing from war, conflict or persecution’.
Mr Justice Holgate ruled against Ms Parkes today, meaning there will be no judicial review into the use of the barge.
Before asylum seekers boarded the barge in August, the Fire Brigades Union wrote to Suella Braverman about fire safety concerns.
