Edinburgh cruise ship must not be used to house asylum seekers

Responding to reports that the Home Office intends to commission the MS Victoria, which has hosted Ukrainians for the past year, to house asylum seekers, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader and Edinburgh Western MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

“I have consistently warned that packing people into moored up cruise ships is an admission of government failure.  

“When the Scottish Government failed to do the groundwork to secure enough accommodation for displaced Ukrainians on land, they were only too happy to corral people onto a cruise ship. It takes some front for Scottish ministers to act appalled when the Home Office put forward the same plans.

“Cabins with no windows are no place for anyone, let alone people desperate to work but banned from doing so by self-defeating UK government diktats.  

“With the asylum backlog at a record high, it is clear that the Conservatives have broken our asylum system. Their approach is immoral, ineffective and incredibly expensive for the taxpayer.  

“Processing of asylum seekers needs to be taken out of the chaotic and dysfunctional hands of the Home Office and given to a new body charged with swiftly processing claims. Liberal Democrat are also leading calls for asylum seekers to be given the right to work, allowing them to fill essential roles, as well as giving them a sense of dignity, and the ability to contribute to the economy.”