Syria: Refugees and Counter-terrorism

Debate between Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton and Melanie Onn

Monday 7th September 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right; keeping the country safe is the first duty of Government.

[Melanie Onn (Great Grimsby) (Lab)]

The Prime Minister has made repeated reference to how much effort this country has put into dealing with the refugee crisis over the past months, but back in June my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol West (Thangam Debbonaire) tabled an early-day motion on Operation Mare Nostrum. That operation was estimated to have saved the lives of half a million refugees in the Mediterranean area, but the Government cancelled it, saying that it was a pull factor. Does the Prime Minister regret cancelling it? Is it time to reinstate it?

[The Prime Minister]

Twenty-eight member states made that decision about Mare Nostrum, but what we then did in response to the growing number of people who were still coming across the Mediterranean was deploy the flagship of the Royal Navy. Again, this was Britain acting rapidly and saving 6,700 lives.