U.K. plans to house asylum seekers on barge, amid efforts to deter boat crossings
![A British Immigration Enforcement officer (L) and an Interforce security officer (2L), escort migrants, picked up at sea by an Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat whilst they were attempting to cross the English Channel, on the shore at Dungeness on the southeast coast of England, on December 9, 2022. Britain Migrants English Channel Dec 2022](https://i.cbc.ca/1.6802509.1680727281!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_460/britain-migrants-english-channel-dec-2022.jpg)
The British government says it has leased a refurbished barge to house 500 migrants on its southern coast, as it faces criticism over is plans to bar asylum seekers arriving in small boats from across the English Channel.