UK government scrapping use of a barge off English coast to house asylum-seekers

LONDON (AP) — The British government says it will end the controversial use of a barge to house asylum-seekers off the south coast of England. The Labour government said Tuesday it will save  $26 million next year by not using the Bibby Stockholm as it overhauls its immigration system. It’s part of a larger plan to save nearly $10 billion in the next decade by clearing a huge asylum backlog. The boat has been at the center of controversy since the Conservative government started using it to tackle the costs of housing thousands of migrants and seek to deter English Channel crossings in unseaworthy boats.