Sturgeon: 'UK Must Do More For Refugees'

4 September 2015, 13:06 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

Nicola Sturgeon has insisted the UK can and must do more to help refugees fleeing Syria for Europe.

Scotland should accept 1,000 people as a "starting point'' for further help, the First Minister said.

She also criticised the UK Government, accusing it of "struggling to show leadership in this refugee crisis''.

Ms Sturgeon said the crisis, sparked by hundreds of thousands fleeing from Syria to Europe, was the worst humanitarian disaster since the Second World War.

People across the world have been shocked by images of desperate families seeking safety, with Ms Sturgeon admitting she had been reduced to tears by the picture of a drowned Syrian boy who was washed up on a Turkish beach.

She said such images would "haunt our consciences and reputation for many generations to come if we don't together and collectively act to help those in desperate need''.

While she accepted a long-term solution to problems in Syria must be found, she argued: "We cannot and we must not leave our fellow human beings to perish in the meantime.''

The SNP leader said: "We here in Scotland and across the UK can do more, and I believe we must do more.''