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Disputed EU migrant plan voted in Migrant crisis: EU ministers approve disputed quota plan
(34 minutes later)
European interior ministers have agreed a deal to relocate 120,000 migrants across the continent in a vote passed by a significant majority. EU interior ministers have approved a controversial plan to relocate 120,000 migrants across the continent over the next two years.
Under the plan, migrants will be moved from Italy, Greece and Hungary to other countries in the EU. It will see migrants moved from Italy, Greece and Hungary to other EU countries.
Four Central European countries voted against mandatory quotas. Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary voted against accepting mandatory quotas.
But a large majority of EU member states backed the plan, which will take effect over the next two years. Finland abstained from the vote. Poland, which had opposed the proposal, voted for it.
The BBC's Brussels correspondent Chris Morris said it was "highly unusual for an issue like this - which involves national sovereignty - to be decided by majority vote rather than unanimous decision". Follow the latest updates on our live page
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The BBC's Europe correspondent Chris Morris said it was highly unusual for an issue like this - which involves national sovereignty - to be decided by majority vote rather than unanimous decision.
The matter must now be ratified by EU leaders in Brussels on Wednesday.
Who are the 120,000?
Source: European Commission
Relocation deal explained
Hungary proposes its own deal
Why central Europe says 'No'
How is migrant crisis dividing EU countries?
EU migration: Crisis in graphics
Earlier in the day, the Czech government warned that the plan was unlikely to work, even if it gained approval.
The UN refugee agency said the scheme would be insufficient, given the large numbers arriving in Europe.
"A relocation programme alone, at this stage in the crisis, will not be enough to stabilise the situation," , UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said.
The number of those needing relocation will probably have to be revised upwards significantly, she said.
The UN says close to 480,000 migrants have arrived in Europe by sea this year, and are now reaching European shores at a rate of nearly 6,000 a day.
Under the EU's constitution, a country that does not agree with a policy on migration imposed upon it could have the right to appeal to the European Council - if it feels "the fundamental principles of its social security or legal system are under threat".
None of the countries that voted against the plan has yet indicated whether they would appeal.
The Czech interior minister Milan Chovanec tweeted: "Very soon we will realise the emperor has no clothes. Today was a defeat for common sense."
The UK has opted against taking part in the relocation scheme and has its own plan to resettle migrants directly from Syrian refugee camps.
A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.