The European Parliament on Thursday voted to back a European Commission plan to relocate 120,000 migrants across the EU based on mandatory quotas.<br /><br /> They would be relocated from Greece, Italy and Hungary in a move to relieve the pressure on those three states, which have struggled to cope with the recent migratory flows from the Middle East and Africa.<br /><br /> 372 parliamentarians voted for the plan, which was put forward by European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker in a speech on September 9th.<br /><br /> But 124 MEPs voted against and there were 54 abstentions.<br /><br /> “We’re not advocating the opening of all borders. but we are advocating staying in touch with our souls. and not saying to people who flee from war and persecution: ‘you should stay away from Europe’s shores,” said Frans Timmermans, the European Commission’s first vice-president.<br /><br /> The support of the parliament would have been needed for the plan to go ahead anyway, but Martin Schulz, the parliament speaker, decided to hold the vot
