The Royal Navy expects to have saved more than 1,000 migrants by the end of today - in their biggest rescue operation in the Mediterranean so far.
Pregnant women and young children are among the 700 desperate people already picked up by HMS Bulwark around 27 miles from the coast of Libya in the busiest day of operations in the Mediterranean.
Efforts are continuing near the war-torn country with those already on board having travelled for around 10 hours in four overcrowded rubber and wooden boats.
The Maritime Rescue Centre in Rome is currently deciding where the migrants should be taken but they are currently being fed and watered on the ship.
The ship which was formerly the Navy's flagship is now diverting to rescue even more migrants as swathes of them take advantage of the crossing calm in seas.
They were picked up by radar in the early hours of this morning and were then given life jackets by Royal Marine Commandos before being transported from the landing craft on to the 19,000 tonne ship.
There were shocking scenes of barefoot men and exhausted pregnant women piling onto the ship before they were huddled together while they waited to have security checks.
Most of them had nothing with them except a plastic carrier bag and mobile phones.
They were given water and some bread while they waited for the news of when they were going to dock in Italy.
Asam, 17, from Ghana, said: 'I decided to leave my country because it was bad.
'I worked in Libya to pay for the journey and I want to live in Italy and work.'
The UK rescue comes as the Italian coastguard revealed nearly 3,500 migrants were saved from the Mediterranean on Saturday alone in a joint operation by Italian, Irish and German ships.
The warship has returned after plucking 747 people from dangerously overcrowded boats in waters off the north African country last week.
All European naval ships in the region were ordered to go to the area after intelligence suggested up to 14 migrant vessels were on the open water.
Royal Navy makes its biggest rescue yet of migrants from Mediterranean death boats as they pluck 1,000 to safety off the shore of Libya
Pregnant women and children among the desperate migrants rescued
Given bread and water by naval officials while security checks carried out
Royal Navy Merlin helicopter spotted the overcrowded boats this morning
Up to 500,000 refugees are waiting on the Libyan coast for migrant boats
By Larisa Brown On Hms Bulwark For The Daily Mail and Kate Pickles For Mailonline
7 June 2015
Daily Mail
Much like the US-Mexico border, the Mediterranean is now something migrants are prepared to risk their lives to cross for a better life
The Royal Navy expects to have saved more than 1,000 migrants by the end of today - in their biggest rescue operation in the Mediterranean so far.
Pregnant women and young children are among the 700 desperate people already picked up by HMS Bulwark around 27 miles from the coast of Libya in the busiest day of operations in the Mediterranean.
Efforts are continuing near the war-torn country with those already on board having travelled for around 10 hours in four overcrowded rubber and wooden boats.
Struggling: A rescued migrant is helped aboard Albion-class assault ship HMS Bulwark in the biggest rescue operation to date by the Royal Navy
The Maritime Rescue Centre in Rome is currently deciding where the migrants should be taken but they are currently being fed and watered on the ship.
The ship which was formerly the Navy's flagship is now diverting to rescue even more migrants as swathes of them take advantage of the crossing calm in seas.
They were picked up by radar in the early hours of this morning and were then given life jackets by Royal Marine Commandos before being transported from the landing craft on to the 19,000 tonne ship.
There were shocking scenes of barefoot men and exhausted pregnant women piling onto the ship before they were huddled together while they waited to have security checks.
Most of them had nothing with them except a plastic carrier bag and mobile phones.
They were given water and some bread while they waited for the news of when they were going to dock in Italy.
Asam, 17, from Ghana, said: 'I decided to leave my country because it was bad.
'I worked in Libya to pay for the journey and I want to live in Italy and work.'
Heaving: More than 700 migrants are onboard the HMS Bulwark with the figure expected to top 1000 by the end of today
Safe now: A migrant woman is pointed in the right direction by navy officials on the HMS Bulwark
Checks: Crew on the HMS Bulwark carry out checks on the migrants rescued today off the coast of Libya
Searched: Royal Navy officials carry out checks on the migrants after they boarded HMS Bulwark on Sunday
Helped: A rescued migrant is received onboard HMS Bulwark in the biggest rescue operation to date by the Royal Navy
Relief: Rescued migrants onboard HMS Bulwark patiently queue as they await assistance
Helping hand: One of the more than 700 migrants already on board the navy ship is helped by crew and a friend
The UK rescue comes as the Italian coastguard revealed nearly 3,500 migrants were saved from the Mediterranean on Saturday alone in a joint operation by Italian, Irish and German ships.
The warship has returned after plucking 747 people from dangerously overcrowded boats in waters off the north African country last week.
All European naval ships in the region were ordered to go to the area after intelligence suggested up to 14 migrant vessels were on the open water.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: 'From first light this morning, a Merlin helicopter from 814 Squadron onboard HMS Bulwark has been conducting surveillance operations and has identified four migrant vessels in distress, containing a total of at least 500 people.
Praise: Defence Secretary Michael Fallon praised efforts being made by the Royal Navy in the Search and Rescue operations in the Mediterranean which will see 1,000 people rescued today
Rescued: HMS Bulwark took part in its biggest rescue operation yet, plucking 700 migrants from dangerous boats off the coast of Libya
The lucky ones: These migrants were rescued this morning by HMS Bulwark with little more than the clothes they stand in. They will be taken to Italy where the Maritime Rescue Centre will decide where they should go
Rescues in Sicily: Migrants sit on a boat during a rescue operation off the coast of Sicily today in this video grab released by the Italian Coastguard (Guardia Costiera)
Desperate: Migrants are rescued off the coast of Sicily by the Italian coastguard earlier today as officials revealed 3,500 were plucked from the Mediterranean in just one day
'HMS Bulwark has now commenced rescue operations to recover those in the vessels.'
Meanwhile David Cameron has said that Britain is a country that 'doesn't walk on by'.
Arriving at the G7 summit in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, the Prime Minister said the flagship had been deployed because the UK is a 'country with a conscience'.
But he warned that the causes of the mass exodus from Libya must be dealt with, not just the consequences.
Mr Cameron said: 'HMS Bulwark, the Royal Navy flagship, is in the Mediterranean because we want to save lives.
'Britain is a country that doesn't walk on by. We are a country with a conscience, and that's right.
'But we also need to do more to stop these people leaving their countries in the first place. That's what we are using our aid budget for, that's why we will be talking here at the G7 about how we try and put a Libyan government together.
'We need to deal with the causes of this migration, not simply with its consequences.'
Half a million refugees are massing in Libya to try and flee to Europe on the migrant boats that have killed thousands already.
The huge number of people was revealed on Friday by senior Royal Navy officers leading Britain's Mediterranean rescue mission off the Libyan coast.
Saved: Rescued migrants sitting on deck of the German Navy frigate Hessen at an unspecified location in the Mediterranean Sea yesterday
Reaching out: Migrants are brought abroad the Hessen. About 2,500 migrants were plucked from Mediterranean waters in 15 rescue operations off the Libyan coast today
Half a million refugees are massing in Libya to try and flee to Europe on the migrant boats that have killed thousands already
British flagship HMS Bulwark was speeding across the Mediterranean to help rescue thousands of migrants said to be stranded at sea having set off on the dangerous journey from Libya to Europe.
The Royal Navy assault ship was one of 11 vessels on their way to a major rescue operation as it emerged the migrants had set off to take advantage of the good weather.
The 19,000-tonne assault ship was sent by the Government to help with search and rescue efforts in the Mediterranean in a bid to tackle a dramatic increase in the number of people dying trying to cross the sea.
It is estimated that more than 1,600 people have drowned so far this year trying to make the crossing.
Many are fleeing war in Libya, where Islamic State fighters are terrorising the population, fuelling instability in the war-torn country.
Bulwark's Captain Nick Cooke-Priest said: 'Indications are that there are from 450,000 to 500,000 migrants in Libya who are waiting at the border.
'There is no indication of a let up, the indications are that there are 450,000-500,000 waiting on the border of Libya or being mustered or being moved to the borders.
'This is not going to stop in the near future.'
On Friday an Irish Navy ship, the LÉ Eithne, successfully located and rescued a small craft with 113 people on board that was in distress 40 km north of Tripoli, Libya.
Irish Navy's LÉ Eithne
The men, women and children were transferred to an Italian ship for onward passage to a port of safety.
Yesterday it successfully located and rescued a barge with about 310 people on board, approximately 30 miles north of the city of Zuwarah, Libya, after they had initiated a distress call.
Weather conditions at the time were difficult, with dense fog hampering the operation.
The people saved were 212 men, 59 women and 39 minors.
This was the sixth successful operation the ship has undertaken since leaving Cork, bringing the total of migrants saved since commencing operations to more than 1,000. It has now resumed patrol and is expecting further operations in the coming hours.
Commodore Martin Connell, the Royal Navy's senior officer commanding the desperate mission, is on board to check on operations.
Rescue efforts: HMS Bulwark is involved in a rescue mission to save 500 migrants in dangerously overcrowded boats off the coast of Libya
Strong words: On a visit to HMS Bulwark off the coast of Libya, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon slammed EU countries for not doing enough to help with flood of migrants crossing Mediterranean
Concern: Defence Secretary Michael Fallon speaking with personnel on board HMS Bulwark. The ship is speeding across the Mediterranean to help rescue up to 3,000 stranded migrants
'This is just the most grim situation you could possibly find,' he said. 'It is a grim business this ... most of these boats won't make it.
'If I could get my hands on some of these smuggling gangs. They have no regard for human life.'
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon visited Bulwark after being flown in on board by one of the ship's two Mark II Merlin helicopters.
He said: 'Well you have seen today 3,000 people trying to cross in a single day, we could see hundreds of thousands trying to cross this summer.
'We all have an interest in tackling this much further back.
'The issue here is poverty and conflict in West Africa and poverty and conflict in East Africa ... some from Syria ... more than a dozen countries in west and east Africa.'
Mr Fallon added: 'We can pool intelligence, get after the gangs themselves, we can try to cut off their financing. People are making money out of misery and we can do more there to track down the money.
Desperate migrants are crossing borders and waiting on the shores of Libya after paying people smuggling gangs to get them to Italy and then on to countries such as Britain.
When the sea is calm, the migrants – who pay as much as £1,000 to get on a boat – will set off and wait for search and rescue teams to save them.
The worrying statistic emerged as the Defence Secretary slammed EU countries for not doing enough to help with the flood of migrants crossing the Mediterranean.
Discussion: Mr Fallon on board HMS Bulwark, whose Commanding Officer Nick Cooke-Priest warned up to half a million migrants are waiting to make the perilous journey by overcrowded boats from Libya to Europe
Safe landing: HMS Bulwark prepares for survivors to come on board after their migrant vessel was rescued in the Mediterranean during an operation on May 13
Relief: A man and his young family are helped to safety during another HMS Bulwark rescue mission at the end of last month
On a visit to HMS Bulwark, Michael Fallon said Britain and Italy alone could not stop the crisis and said other EU countries had to get involved.
Speaking on the ship, he said: 'It can't simply be left to the Italian Navy and the Royal Navy. Every European country has to get involved.
'You've seen here German, Italian and British ships working together but every EU country has an interest in helping to deal with this problem much further back otherwise potentially we will see thousands continuing to try to cross every day and the loss of life that comes with that.'
He added: 'The Royal Navy stepped up to the plate straight away as David Cameron promised at the emergency summit so we are doing our bit with Bulwark and the helicopters - obviously we want other European countries to do more as well.'
More than 2,000 men, women and children were rescued earlier on Saturday from four boats, according to the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), and are being taken to Sicily.
Italian, Irish and German ships joined the effort along with a medical vessel from Doctors Without Borders (MSF), which assessed and treated hundreds of patients at sea, reported The Independent.
A journalist from American network ABC boarded one of the emptied migrant boats, photographing the 'tiny, putrid' hold where an estimated 250 people were crammed next to the engine for their voyage.
It was unclear whether that rescue was part of the incident that the HMS Bulwark was attending.
Focused: Mr Fallon said the causes of the migrant crisis, which had seen families like those pictured right making the dangerous journey from Libya to Europe, had to be tackled 'much further back'
HMS Bulwark has helped save nearly 4,000 migrants alone since it deployed to the region in late April.
In 2015 so far, 76,000 migrants have made the 260 mile crossing to Europe from Libya - 40,000 of whom are in Italy.
Britain's ship can carry up to 2,000 migrants at any one time but the ship only has the equipment and assets available to look after that many for 24 hours.
Once they are picked up, the UK then hands them over to the Italians and from there they can register as asylum seekers.
The government has so far rejected suggestions each country should share the burden and take in a quota of migrants.
Asked if they should be sent back, Mr Fallon said: 'We've argued that you have to distinguish search and rescue from settlement.
'That is the most important thing. In the end we have to have a more comprehensive solution.
'Any policy of return obviously would have to negotiate with the Libyan authorities… That is the difficulty.
'That is why we are working hard to establish a Libyan government with which Europe can negotiate.'
Pregnant women and young children are among the 700 desperate people already picked up by HMS Bulwark around 27 miles from the coast of Libya in the busiest day of operations in the Mediterranean.
Efforts are continuing near the war-torn country with those already on board having travelled for around 10 hours in four overcrowded rubber and wooden boats.
The Maritime Rescue Centre in Rome is currently deciding where the migrants should be taken but they are currently being fed and watered on the ship.
The ship which was formerly the Navy's flagship is now diverting to rescue even more migrants as swathes of them take advantage of the crossing calm in seas.
They were picked up by radar in the early hours of this morning and were then given life jackets by Royal Marine Commandos before being transported from the landing craft on to the 19,000 tonne ship.
There were shocking scenes of barefoot men and exhausted pregnant women piling onto the ship before they were huddled together while they waited to have security checks.
Most of them had nothing with them except a plastic carrier bag and mobile phones.
They were given water and some bread while they waited for the news of when they were going to dock in Italy.
Asam, 17, from Ghana, said: 'I decided to leave my country because it was bad.
'I worked in Libya to pay for the journey and I want to live in Italy and work.'
The UK rescue comes as the Italian coastguard revealed nearly 3,500 migrants were saved from the Mediterranean on Saturday alone in a joint operation by Italian, Irish and German ships.
The warship has returned after plucking 747 people from dangerously overcrowded boats in waters off the north African country last week.
All European naval ships in the region were ordered to go to the area after intelligence suggested up to 14 migrant vessels were on the open water.
Royal Navy makes its biggest rescue yet of migrants from Mediterranean death boats as they pluck 1,000 to safety off the shore of Libya
Pregnant women and children among the desperate migrants rescued
Given bread and water by naval officials while security checks carried out
Royal Navy Merlin helicopter spotted the overcrowded boats this morning
Up to 500,000 refugees are waiting on the Libyan coast for migrant boats
By Larisa Brown On Hms Bulwark For The Daily Mail and Kate Pickles For Mailonline
7 June 2015
Daily Mail
Much like the US-Mexico border, the Mediterranean is now something migrants are prepared to risk their lives to cross for a better life
The Royal Navy expects to have saved more than 1,000 migrants by the end of today - in their biggest rescue operation in the Mediterranean so far.
Pregnant women and young children are among the 700 desperate people already picked up by HMS Bulwark around 27 miles from the coast of Libya in the busiest day of operations in the Mediterranean.
Efforts are continuing near the war-torn country with those already on board having travelled for around 10 hours in four overcrowded rubber and wooden boats.
Struggling: A rescued migrant is helped aboard Albion-class assault ship HMS Bulwark in the biggest rescue operation to date by the Royal Navy
The Maritime Rescue Centre in Rome is currently deciding where the migrants should be taken but they are currently being fed and watered on the ship.
The ship which was formerly the Navy's flagship is now diverting to rescue even more migrants as swathes of them take advantage of the crossing calm in seas.
They were picked up by radar in the early hours of this morning and were then given life jackets by Royal Marine Commandos before being transported from the landing craft on to the 19,000 tonne ship.
There were shocking scenes of barefoot men and exhausted pregnant women piling onto the ship before they were huddled together while they waited to have security checks.
Most of them had nothing with them except a plastic carrier bag and mobile phones.
They were given water and some bread while they waited for the news of when they were going to dock in Italy.
Asam, 17, from Ghana, said: 'I decided to leave my country because it was bad.
'I worked in Libya to pay for the journey and I want to live in Italy and work.'
Heaving: More than 700 migrants are onboard the HMS Bulwark with the figure expected to top 1000 by the end of today
Safe now: A migrant woman is pointed in the right direction by navy officials on the HMS Bulwark
Checks: Crew on the HMS Bulwark carry out checks on the migrants rescued today off the coast of Libya
Searched: Royal Navy officials carry out checks on the migrants after they boarded HMS Bulwark on Sunday
Helped: A rescued migrant is received onboard HMS Bulwark in the biggest rescue operation to date by the Royal Navy
Relief: Rescued migrants onboard HMS Bulwark patiently queue as they await assistance
Helping hand: One of the more than 700 migrants already on board the navy ship is helped by crew and a friend
The UK rescue comes as the Italian coastguard revealed nearly 3,500 migrants were saved from the Mediterranean on Saturday alone in a joint operation by Italian, Irish and German ships.
The warship has returned after plucking 747 people from dangerously overcrowded boats in waters off the north African country last week.
All European naval ships in the region were ordered to go to the area after intelligence suggested up to 14 migrant vessels were on the open water.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: 'From first light this morning, a Merlin helicopter from 814 Squadron onboard HMS Bulwark has been conducting surveillance operations and has identified four migrant vessels in distress, containing a total of at least 500 people.
Praise: Defence Secretary Michael Fallon praised efforts being made by the Royal Navy in the Search and Rescue operations in the Mediterranean which will see 1,000 people rescued today
Rescued: HMS Bulwark took part in its biggest rescue operation yet, plucking 700 migrants from dangerous boats off the coast of Libya
The lucky ones: These migrants were rescued this morning by HMS Bulwark with little more than the clothes they stand in. They will be taken to Italy where the Maritime Rescue Centre will decide where they should go
Rescues in Sicily: Migrants sit on a boat during a rescue operation off the coast of Sicily today in this video grab released by the Italian Coastguard (Guardia Costiera)
Desperate: Migrants are rescued off the coast of Sicily by the Italian coastguard earlier today as officials revealed 3,500 were plucked from the Mediterranean in just one day
'HMS Bulwark has now commenced rescue operations to recover those in the vessels.'
Meanwhile David Cameron has said that Britain is a country that 'doesn't walk on by'.
Arriving at the G7 summit in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, the Prime Minister said the flagship had been deployed because the UK is a 'country with a conscience'.
But he warned that the causes of the mass exodus from Libya must be dealt with, not just the consequences.
Mr Cameron said: 'HMS Bulwark, the Royal Navy flagship, is in the Mediterranean because we want to save lives.
'Britain is a country that doesn't walk on by. We are a country with a conscience, and that's right.
'But we also need to do more to stop these people leaving their countries in the first place. That's what we are using our aid budget for, that's why we will be talking here at the G7 about how we try and put a Libyan government together.
'We need to deal with the causes of this migration, not simply with its consequences.'
Half a million refugees are massing in Libya to try and flee to Europe on the migrant boats that have killed thousands already.
The huge number of people was revealed on Friday by senior Royal Navy officers leading Britain's Mediterranean rescue mission off the Libyan coast.
Saved: Rescued migrants sitting on deck of the German Navy frigate Hessen at an unspecified location in the Mediterranean Sea yesterday
Reaching out: Migrants are brought abroad the Hessen. About 2,500 migrants were plucked from Mediterranean waters in 15 rescue operations off the Libyan coast today
Half a million refugees are massing in Libya to try and flee to Europe on the migrant boats that have killed thousands already
British flagship HMS Bulwark was speeding across the Mediterranean to help rescue thousands of migrants said to be stranded at sea having set off on the dangerous journey from Libya to Europe.
The Royal Navy assault ship was one of 11 vessels on their way to a major rescue operation as it emerged the migrants had set off to take advantage of the good weather.
The 19,000-tonne assault ship was sent by the Government to help with search and rescue efforts in the Mediterranean in a bid to tackle a dramatic increase in the number of people dying trying to cross the sea.
It is estimated that more than 1,600 people have drowned so far this year trying to make the crossing.
Many are fleeing war in Libya, where Islamic State fighters are terrorising the population, fuelling instability in the war-torn country.
Bulwark's Captain Nick Cooke-Priest said: 'Indications are that there are from 450,000 to 500,000 migrants in Libya who are waiting at the border.
'There is no indication of a let up, the indications are that there are 450,000-500,000 waiting on the border of Libya or being mustered or being moved to the borders.
'This is not going to stop in the near future.'
On Friday an Irish Navy ship, the LÉ Eithne, successfully located and rescued a small craft with 113 people on board that was in distress 40 km north of Tripoli, Libya.
Irish Navy's LÉ Eithne
The men, women and children were transferred to an Italian ship for onward passage to a port of safety.
Yesterday it successfully located and rescued a barge with about 310 people on board, approximately 30 miles north of the city of Zuwarah, Libya, after they had initiated a distress call.
Weather conditions at the time were difficult, with dense fog hampering the operation.
The people saved were 212 men, 59 women and 39 minors.
This was the sixth successful operation the ship has undertaken since leaving Cork, bringing the total of migrants saved since commencing operations to more than 1,000. It has now resumed patrol and is expecting further operations in the coming hours.
Commodore Martin Connell, the Royal Navy's senior officer commanding the desperate mission, is on board to check on operations.
Rescue efforts: HMS Bulwark is involved in a rescue mission to save 500 migrants in dangerously overcrowded boats off the coast of Libya
Strong words: On a visit to HMS Bulwark off the coast of Libya, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon slammed EU countries for not doing enough to help with flood of migrants crossing Mediterranean
Concern: Defence Secretary Michael Fallon speaking with personnel on board HMS Bulwark. The ship is speeding across the Mediterranean to help rescue up to 3,000 stranded migrants
'This is just the most grim situation you could possibly find,' he said. 'It is a grim business this ... most of these boats won't make it.
'If I could get my hands on some of these smuggling gangs. They have no regard for human life.'
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon visited Bulwark after being flown in on board by one of the ship's two Mark II Merlin helicopters.
He said: 'Well you have seen today 3,000 people trying to cross in a single day, we could see hundreds of thousands trying to cross this summer.
'We all have an interest in tackling this much further back.
'The issue here is poverty and conflict in West Africa and poverty and conflict in East Africa ... some from Syria ... more than a dozen countries in west and east Africa.'
Mr Fallon added: 'We can pool intelligence, get after the gangs themselves, we can try to cut off their financing. People are making money out of misery and we can do more there to track down the money.
Desperate migrants are crossing borders and waiting on the shores of Libya after paying people smuggling gangs to get them to Italy and then on to countries such as Britain.
When the sea is calm, the migrants – who pay as much as £1,000 to get on a boat – will set off and wait for search and rescue teams to save them.
The worrying statistic emerged as the Defence Secretary slammed EU countries for not doing enough to help with the flood of migrants crossing the Mediterranean.
Discussion: Mr Fallon on board HMS Bulwark, whose Commanding Officer Nick Cooke-Priest warned up to half a million migrants are waiting to make the perilous journey by overcrowded boats from Libya to Europe
Safe landing: HMS Bulwark prepares for survivors to come on board after their migrant vessel was rescued in the Mediterranean during an operation on May 13
Relief: A man and his young family are helped to safety during another HMS Bulwark rescue mission at the end of last month
On a visit to HMS Bulwark, Michael Fallon said Britain and Italy alone could not stop the crisis and said other EU countries had to get involved.
Speaking on the ship, he said: 'It can't simply be left to the Italian Navy and the Royal Navy. Every European country has to get involved.
'You've seen here German, Italian and British ships working together but every EU country has an interest in helping to deal with this problem much further back otherwise potentially we will see thousands continuing to try to cross every day and the loss of life that comes with that.'
He added: 'The Royal Navy stepped up to the plate straight away as David Cameron promised at the emergency summit so we are doing our bit with Bulwark and the helicopters - obviously we want other European countries to do more as well.'
More than 2,000 men, women and children were rescued earlier on Saturday from four boats, according to the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), and are being taken to Sicily.
Italian, Irish and German ships joined the effort along with a medical vessel from Doctors Without Borders (MSF), which assessed and treated hundreds of patients at sea, reported The Independent.
A journalist from American network ABC boarded one of the emptied migrant boats, photographing the 'tiny, putrid' hold where an estimated 250 people were crammed next to the engine for their voyage.
It was unclear whether that rescue was part of the incident that the HMS Bulwark was attending.
Focused: Mr Fallon said the causes of the migrant crisis, which had seen families like those pictured right making the dangerous journey from Libya to Europe, had to be tackled 'much further back'
HMS Bulwark has helped save nearly 4,000 migrants alone since it deployed to the region in late April.
In 2015 so far, 76,000 migrants have made the 260 mile crossing to Europe from Libya - 40,000 of whom are in Italy.
Britain's ship can carry up to 2,000 migrants at any one time but the ship only has the equipment and assets available to look after that many for 24 hours.
Once they are picked up, the UK then hands them over to the Italians and from there they can register as asylum seekers.
The government has so far rejected suggestions each country should share the burden and take in a quota of migrants.
Asked if they should be sent back, Mr Fallon said: 'We've argued that you have to distinguish search and rescue from settlement.
'That is the most important thing. In the end we have to have a more comprehensive solution.
'Any policy of return obviously would have to negotiate with the Libyan authorities… That is the difficulty.
'That is why we are working hard to establish a Libyan government with which Europe can negotiate.'
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