HMS Enterprise and HMS Richmond complete rescue of 541 migrants

The HMS Enterprise rescued 439 people, while the HMS Richmond picked up another 102. The latest rescue means the total people picked up by the Royal Navy sits at 7,000 since it joined the mission to help refugees attempting to make the voyage to southern Europe.

Michael Fallon, the Defence Secretary, said: "Our focus remains on hitting the criminal gangs responsible for endangering the lives of innocent people. We are determined to tackle this at source. The new powers we have to board boats and detain the smugglers will help us put an end to this trade in human misery."

However, defence sources have admitted that more aggressive missions to combat people smugglers has been hindered by the inability to enter Libyan territorial waters.

Read more