British government wants to accommodate migrants on ships and military bases

Great Britain also wants to accommodate asylum seekers on ships in the future and thus significantly reduce costs. "We will look at the full range of options, low-cost housing, former army barracks and - where appropriate and as done elsewhere in Europe (...) - ships when they can be used safely and responsibly," Justice Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC on Wednesday.

The previous accommodation in hotels entails “high costs for taxpayers”, said the Tory politician. Britain says it currently pays £6.8 million (€7.75 million) a day for hotels where migrants stay. According to a study by the Independent Commission for Aid Impact, a third of the British development aid budget is spent on supporting refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom. As a result, aid for natural disasters abroad suffers, it said.

As reported by the media, newly arriving migrants are initially to be housed at two air force bases. But this is also causing trouble within the cabinet: Secretary of State James Cleverly has criticized the planned use of a base in his constituency.

The conservative government wants to use all its might against unwanted migrants. A controversial law stipulates that anyone arriving irregularly should be detained for weeks and then deported to Rwanda or other countries. They should be denied the right to apply for asylum. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak rejects exceptions for children. The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe have sharply criticized the project.

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