David Cameron: UK will take 'thousands more' Syrian refugees

Video report by ITV News' Carl Dinnen

Britain will accept "thousands more" Syrian refugees, David Cameron has announced.

Amid growing international and domestic pressure, the Prime Minister said Britain would act "with our head and our heart" in response to the crisis.

But he did not give a precise figure on the number of Syrians who will be taken in, saying the details were still being finalised and would be announced next week.

"Given the scale of the crisis and the suffering of people, today I can announce that we will do more, providing resettlement for thousands more Syrian refugees," Mr Cameron said during a visit to Spain.

He also announced an extra £100 million in humanitarian aid for those fleeing the conflict - bringing the UK's contribution to more than £1 billion.

Mr Cameron said this was the "UK's largest ever response to a humanitarian crisis".

He had come under severe pressure to act following the publication of pictures showing drowned three-year-old Syrian toddler, Aylan Kurdi, lying face down on a Turkish beach.

Aylan (left) with his brother Galip. Credit: ITV News

He said Britain had already offered asylum to around 5,000 Syrians in recent years and that the country had a "moral responsibility" to help.

The Prime Minister said he hoped the move would discourage people from "risking the hazardous journey" which has claimed thousands of lives already this year.

But he said admitting refugees "can only ever be part of the answer" to the migration crisis and that a comprehensive approach was needed.

The PM said the UK will continue to help with rescue operations in the Med. Credit: PA

Mr Cameron said he was "deeply moved" by the images of Aylan's lifeless body on the beach.