First asylum-seekers board Bibby Stockholm barge

The first asylum seekers to live onboard a 500-berth barge, will be boarding the vessel today according to authorities.

A national news organisation reported that today will see the first 50 refugee men taken to the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland today.

Upto 500 men aged between 18 and 65 will be living onboard the barge in the near future.

It docked just off the coast weeks ago but has laid empty due to fears of health and safety concerns.

Ministers are now saying the vessel is safe and functioning.

The Home Office says the barge is safe and ready to accept the first set of asylum seekers.

Previously to its current assignment, the vessel housed oil and gas workers in Genoa, Italy.

A significant difference, however, is that in its current state, the capacity onboard the ship has been doubled from the 220 men it used to be home to.

The UK Government has doubled the capacity by introducing bunk beds in the majority of berths, and what were formally communal rooms have been turned into four or five-person dormitories.

Asylum seekers will be on board the vessel for 3-6 months while applications are processed.

The vessel is over three stories high, and 96 meters in length.

The Firefighters union has demanded a meeting with Suella Braverman over concerns about fire safety.

The union is concerned about a potential lack of ingress and exit points; narrow corridors and doorways; and increased occupancy. They say: "the barge was originally built to house 222 people but is now expected to house more than 500."