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

LONDON -- The British government said Tuesday it will scrap the controversial use of a barge to house asylum-seekers off the south coast of England as part of its immigration system overhaul.

The Labour government that took power earlier this month said that ending the contract for the Bibby Stockholm would save 20 million pounds ($26 million) next year. It's part of a larger plan to save over 7.7 billion pounds ($9.9 billion) over the next decade by clearing a huge asylum backlog.

The boat has been at the center of controversy since it was first towed into Portland harbor in Dorset a year ago to house up to 500 asylum-seekers. It was billed as a cheaper alternative to hotels as the Conservative government tried to tackle the costs of housing thousands of migrants and deter English Channel crossings in unseaworthy boats.

Its arrival was met by local protesters who didn't want it moored in their hometown and others who welcomed refugees but objected to what they called a “prison barge.”

In August, the discovery in its water supply of legionella bacteria, which can cause serious illness, forced a two-month evacuation of the ship. In December, an Albanian man was found dead on board and was believed to have committed suicide.

“The Bibby Stockholm became the physical symbol for the last government’s inhumane treatment of people seeking sanctuary in the U.K.," said Steve Smith, chief executive of refugee charity Care4Calais. “The despair and suffering the barge has caused will live long in the people who were residents of it."

The barge will continue to be used through the end of the year.

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