Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that all staff employed on the Bibby Stockholm (a) by his Department and (b) through sub-contracts are paid at least the national minimum wage.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
All staff are paid at a minimum of the National Living Wage. No accommodation offset is applied to the rate of pay for staff who reside on the Bibby Stockholm.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data his Department holds on the number and proportion of berths on the Bibby Stockholm that are reserved for staff to live on board; and whether the accommodation offset is applied to the pay of any staff being paid at the level of the national minimum wage.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
All staff are paid at a minimum of the National Living Wage. No accommodation offset is applied to the rate of pay for staff who reside on the Bibby Stockholm.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Professor Brian Bell's letter, published by his Department on 12 March 2024, what assessment he has made of Migration Advisory Committee's concerns on the timescales for its review of the Graduate route.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
It is important that we provide certainty on this issue in a timely manner, which is why we asked the MAC to carry out a rapid review. We will consider the evidence put forward by the MAC very closely.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which sub-contractors are providing (a) security and (b) welfare services to people accommodated on the Bibby Stockholm.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Corporate Travel Management (CTM) is responsible for managing the services on the barge. CTM, who managed two Scottish vessels used to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, has a strong track record of providing this kind of accommodation, and we are confident that they have the ability to manage the vessel and its supporting services. CTM has worked closely and successfully with local authorities and other public and voluntary organisations in Scotland.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if his Department will undertake a review of all animal procedures to (a) identify and (b) remove (i) redundant, (ii) duplicate and (iii) wasteful methods of animal testing.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Home Office Regulator reviews every project licence application to use animals in scientific procedures. A licence will only be granted when the Regulator is satisfied that there are no practicable alternatives, that the number of animals used is the minimum needed to achieve the scientific benefit, and that any harm to animals is limited to that needed to achieve the scientific benefit.
The National Centre for the 3Rs, which receives core funding from UK Research and Innovation, supports these aims by working to accelerate the replacement, reduction and refinement of the use of animals in research.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which public authorities are responsible for investigating the death of Leonard Farruku on the Bibby Stockholm barge on 12 December 2023.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
This tragic incident is subject to an ongoing investigation by the police and the Coroner. It is right that the facts surrounding this are established in the appropriate legal manner.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the contract between his Department and Corporate Travel Management includes penalties for (a) fatalities among and (b) injuries sustained by people accommodated on the Bibby Stockholm.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Accommodation costs are considered to be commercially confidential. Therefore, the Home Office does not publish this information. However, total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at:
Home Office Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 (publishing.service.gov.uk).
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will review the performance criteria of the contract between his Department and Corporate Travel Management for the Bibby Stockholm.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Accommodation costs are considered to be commercially confidential. Therefore, the Home Office does not publish this information. However, total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at:
Home Office Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 (publishing.service.gov.uk).
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish the charter agreement between his Department and Bibby Shipping for the Bibby Stockholm.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Accommodation costs are considered to be commercially confidential. Therefore, the Home Office does not publish this information. However, total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at:
Home Office Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 (publishing.service.gov.uk).
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers were being accommodated on the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland on 8 December 2023.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Bibby Stockholm can accommodate around 500 people. The number of asylum seekers onboard the vessel at any one time is likely to vary due to a number of factors.