Mairead McGuinness
Photo: Irish Independent Fine Gael MEPs have voted against a resolution to step up search and rescue for refugees in the Mediterranean Sea.
The European Parliament rejected the vote asking member states to step up efforts to save asylum seekers making the perilous crossing late last week.
All of Fine Gael’s MEPs – Mairead McGuinness, Maria Walsh, Frances Fitzgerald and Sean Kelly – voted against the resolution, which lost by two.
The resolution called on the “EU Member States to enhance proactive search and rescue operations by providing sufficient vessels and equipment specifically dedicated to search and rescue operations and personnel, along the routes where they can make an effective contribution to the preservation of lives”, and “to step up their efforts in support of search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean”.