The government’s ‘small boats week’ has gone from bad to worse. Just days after the government celebrated getting the first migrants onboard the barge, the boat has had to be evacuated following the detection of legionella bacteria in its water supply. This all comes after a record day of small boat crossings as the total number of illegal migrants detected in the Channel has topped 100,000. A Home Office spokesman confirmed:

“Environmental samples from the water system on the Bibby Stockholm have shown levels of legionella bacteria which require further investigation… As a precautionary measure, all 39 asylum seekers who arrived on the vessel this week are being disembarked while further assessments are undertaken… No individuals on board have presented with symptoms of Legionnaires’”.

That’s another £20,000 in daily operating costs down the legionella-infected drain…