As the Bibby Stockholm asylum seekers' barge docked at Portland Port this morning, the leader of Dorset Council has denied claims that the authority lied about its actions to stop the vessel.

Cllr Spencer Flower said that the council had done all it could to stop the vessel from coming to the county – but had its hands partly tied because Portland Port and the Home Office had already reached a provisional agreement before the council knew what was happening.

He has re-iterated his belief that Portland is not the right place for the vessel.

The council leader said that the authority sought advice from a leading barrister, Richard Wald KC, about potential grounds for a legal challenge – Mr Wald being chosen because of his expertise and his success in obtaining an injunction against Home Office plans for asylum hotels in Great Yarmouth.

Cllr Flower's statement, released after the council was accused of "deafening silence and lies" by members of the public at a meeting last week, read: "A team of council officers drawn from our legal service, planning, regulatory services, housing and children's and adult social care prepared detailed background information and held meetings with the barrister to identify possible grounds for a legal challenge.

"We focused on the planning status of Portland Port and whether it could be argued that the proposal to site the barge in the Port was unlawful because no planning permission had been obtained.

"In addition, we asked for advice about whether the Home Office should have consulted the local community and the council about their proposal. We also sought advice about whether the barge proposal was so obviously wrong that a court would be likely to intervene and declare it unlawful (what lawyers call an irrational decision).

"After a thorough examination of the issues the barrister advised that we did not have strong grounds to bring a legal challenge. He also advised that there was no requirement for the Home Office to consult us about their proposals."

Cllr Flower said that although some councils had obtained temporary injunctions against plans for asylum seekers, their arguments had generally used planning law, arguing that accommodating asylum seekers in hotels would involve a change of use from hotel to hostel accommodation requiring a new grant of planning permission.

"The circumstances at Portland Port are very different because where the barge is to be positioned is below the mean low water mark," he continued.

"This means that the barge is outside of our planning control and there is no requirement for planning permission from the council.

"I for one do not wish to use local council tax to pay for an unsuccessful legal challenge."

Dorset Council last week passed a motion condemning the 18-month agreement between Portland Port and the Home Office over the barge and called for it to be moved as soon as possible.

At the same time the authority has said that it will do all that it can for the asylum seekers once they start to arrive, working with other agencies, including health and the police.

The United Kingdom has a legal obligation to support asylum seekers, who would otherwise be destitute. The government is using barges and other accommodation options as an alternative to hotels to house asylum seekers, saying this offers better value for the taxpayer.

Dorset Council has negotiated a funding package from the government of £3,500 per occupied bed space on the Bibby Stockholm, plus a one-off payment of £377,000.

The barge, which arrived in Portland this morning (Tuesday) after being towed from Falmouth, is expected to be docked at the port for 18 months and will house up to 500 asylum seekers – adult males aged between 18 to 65 from various countries, all of whom will have been in the UK for some time.

Asylum seekers will have been through a 'suitability screening' process that includes physical and mental health checks and security screenings, such as identity checks against UK immigration and police data bases.