Sir Mick Davis, the chairman of the Jewish Leadership Council, has said that Britain has a “moral imperative” to help refugees from the Middle East and Africa.

Sir Mick, who was head of David Cameron’s Holocaust Commission, told the Times that the UK had welcomed Jews fleeing from the Nazis in the 1930s and should not now “shut itself off”.

Mr Cameron is facing pressure from other European Union countries, led by Germany, for Britain to accept more of the thousands of migrants from Syria, Libya and Iraq.

Some Conservative MPs have also called for increased numbers of asylum seekers to be allowed into Britain, but the Prime Minister has warned that the migration crisis will not be solved by accepting “more and more refugees”.

Stabilising the situation in the Middle East and north Africa should be the priority, Mr Cameron said.

Meanwhile the Board of Deputies has expressed horror and pain at the death of Aylan Kurdi, the three year old Syrian Kurdish boy who drowned alongside his brother Galip and their mother, Rehan off the coast of Turkey.

There was a shocked reaction after photos of Aylan's dead body appeared in the media today.

In a statement, the Board said: "Aylan's family are from Kobani, which has been subjected to some of the fiercest fighting between ISIS and Kurdish groups. We hope that the shocking photo which has made its way around the world will spur world leaders into action.

Board senior vice president Richard Verber said: "As war rages with unthinkable barbarity in the Middle East, we must be diligent in avoiding using dehumanising language when discussing this issue, particularly given the history of Jews in the UK - most of whom are descended from refugees. We must act with compassion and care towards our fellow human beings."