Britain has become a "destination of choice" for "feckless" Poles who have ended up jobless and homeless here, Poland's President Lech Kaczynski said today.

And he also accused some of his fellow-countrymen of claiming unemployment benefits at home while "doing very nicely" working in the UK.

Mr Kaczynski was speaking at a press conference in 10 Downing Street following talks with Prime Minister Tony Blair in which he stressed his deep gratitude to the UK for opening up its labour market to Polish workers

Mr Blair accepted there were "difficulties in some areas" with the arrival of tens of thousands of workers from former Communist states in eastern Europe since their accession to the European Union in 2004.

But he insisted that they were generally "very well regarded" by British people and said he believed the overall impact of their presence had benefited the UK.

A report by Westminster City Council last week revealed that almost half of central London's homeless people now originate from eastern Europe, most of them Polish men who came to the UK hoping to find work but ended up on the streets.

Asked today whether Warsaw should do more to help such people, Mr Kaczynski said: "I believe there are a number of people - not only from Poland but from a number of other countries - who are feckless naturally, but they seek a better life and they go abroad.

"Currently, the UK has become a destination of choice for such individuals. Poland doesn't shirk responsibility for such individuals. We are aware that such a problem exists."

He added: "We know that there are those who have succeeded in the UK and have jobs and are doing very well, thank you, especially considering the difference in wages between the UK and Poland.

"But these people are registered as unemployed in Poland, so they are living a fiction and raising unemployment figures in Poland while they are doing very nicely in the UK and their unemployment benefits should rightly be sent to London. This is something we would like to do without."

Mr Blair said: "I have to say that the vast majority of Polish people who come to work here are working very hard. They are very well regarded.

"One of the reasons we opened our labour markets is we know it would be of benefit to us as well, and it has been of benefit to us as well.

"Although there are difficulties in some areas, of course, when you have significant numbers of people coming in, on the whole I think the Polish delegation here will find a very warm welcome from British people to people from Poland."

Both leaders said they expected the flow of workers from Poland to the UK to abate as the Polish economy strengthens, and suggested that in the long term, British workers can be expected to travel in the other direction in search of opportunities.

Mr Kaczynski indicated he expects many of the Poles who have come to the UK in the past two years to return home after a relatively short stay.

"I would like to thank Great Britain for its opening of the labour market to Poles. Quite a few Poles seem to want to use this opportunity to learn the language and work in Britain," he said.

"I very much hope they will return to Poland with better qualifications and better knowledge of the English language."

Official figures show that 230,000 Poles have registered to work in the UK since 2004, though a survey for the BBC this summer suggested the actual number working here may be much higher.

Mr Blair and Mr Kaczynski signed a joint communique setting out a "shared vision" for the future of Europe, focusing on issues like economic reform, energy security and action to combat climate change, rather than institutional reform and the stalled constitution.

Mr Kaczynski arrived in the UK yesterday evening and had an audience with the Queen at Buckingham Palace this morning. He will meet members of the Polish community both in London and Edinburgh before leaving for Poland tomorrow evening.

He was quizzed by Polish reporters about whether he liked English breakfast, which he said he had enjoyed, although he found it "too hearty for me, a bit copious".

Pole Ania Heasley, director of south London recruitment agency, Ania's Poland, said Mr Kaczynski was "misinterpreting" the thousands of Poles who come to Britain each year.

She said far from being feckless these people should be praised for their courage and determination in coming to a foreign country to make a better life for themselves.

"He should have done something to keep them in Poland," she said.

"Poland has nothing to offer to these people. The last thing he should do is criticise them. If anything he should be impressed with them for their courage and determination to do something despite their own country not offering them jobs or prospects."

She added: "I think he is totally misinterpreting them. They are highly determined, driven, hard-working people. They are here because they want to improve the lives of their families, they are not here for fun.

"Most of these people would have left their families behind. These are very hard decisions that they have to make based on no work, no prospects and no money to buy even basic stuff in Poland.

"So I think he is being condescending and disrespectful to people who are in England because they could not find work in Poland and could not live a decent life where they would want to.

"Maybe he could take responsibility for creating jobs in Poland."

Copyright Press Association 2006