During these recent weeks there has been a steady arrival of illegal immigrants being intercepted and taken to Motril Port – space is running out.

Around 100 people were taken to the port between the 1st of July and the 2nd of August according to the figures belonging to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

This Monday, for example, eight people had reached the beach in Castell de Ferro and were transferred to the old Centro de Atención Temporal a Extranjeros (CATE) in Motril, inside the port.

The Town Hall is anxious to avoid another incident like that which occurred in May when 17 recently arrived immigrants were released to wander the streets because the 72 hours that they could legally be kept in the CATE had expired.

What the Town Hall wants is for the Central Government through its provincial representative to provide space so that the NGOs can give emergency attention to recent arrivals and where they can spend the quarantine period, should it be required.

Two buildings have been put forward by the municipal social services: the old national police station (next to the municipal library) and the Casa de Mar, which is just outside the port.

Unfortunately, talks between the two administrations are not going that well, despite the Town Hall urging the Government to finish the new CATE installations so that they can be put to use. Construction on the new one began over a year ago but funds for finishing it are pending the approval for the 2020 National Budget.

(News: Motril, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)