Britain on Monday unveiled tough new work and welfare restrictions aimed at curbing a feared wave of migrants from the 10 poorer, mostly eastern European nations due to join the EU in less than three months.

Home Secretary David Blunkett told parliament that people from the nations joining the European Union on May 1 would be barred from claiming British welfare benefits for at least two years.

And although the current requirement for people from the 10 countries to get a formal work permit will be scrapped, instead they will have to sign up to a "workers' registration scheme", something not required for existing EU members.

Fears of a potential pool of low-cost workers ready to pour into Britain have become a hot issue among the British public, with the popular press already feasting on stories of refugees allegedly living it up on Britain's supposedly generous system of hand-outs.

"We welcome people, as we have throughout the centuries, to come to our country to work, to contribute and to be part of our society," Blunkett said.

But he warned: "We reject those from wherever they come, who exploit our hospitality."

The registration scheme would allow the government to monitor the number of new entrants, Blunkett said.

"Their right to work in the UK will depend on their being issued with a registration certificate," he explained, adding the controls could be toughened up later if needed.

On May 1, Eastern European nations the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia will join the EU, along with Mediterranean island states Cyprus and Malta.

Monday's announcement sees Britain fall belatedly into line with the bulk of current EU members, all of whom except Ireland have imposed varying restrictions on how or when citizens from the new nations can work or claim benefits.

The government of Prime Minister Tony Blair only announced earlier this month that it would take action, after mounting pressure fuelled by high-profile campaigns in eurosceptic tabloid newspapers.

Some of the headlines screamed about warnings of a "flood" of new immigrants, especially from eastern Europe's Roma, or gypsy, community.

However Blunkett took pains to stress that the new restrictions did not mean that citizens from the accession nations were seen as unwelcome.

"EU enlargement is extremely welcome and important to our economy. It is something to be celebrated," he said.

Britain, the economy of which is performing notably better than many of those elsewhere in the continent, has been keen to stress the need for willing foreign workers to fill job vacancies.

"Our position has always been clear -- that the UK would benefit from all new EU citizens working legally, paying taxes and national insurance," Blunkett said, warning that those without means of support would be removed.

Blair gave the same message earlier Monday.

"If they can't support themselves, they will be put out of the country," he told BBC television.

Blair has denied that newspaper pressure has been behind the action, but the issue is a deeply sensitive one for the government.

Earlier Monday a leading immigrants' charity accused the government of "over-reaction" over benefit rules.

"You already have to prove that you are habitually resident in the UK, and this is a perfectly adequate safeguard," said Keith Best, chief executive of the Immigration Advisory Service.

"Existing laws are quite sufficient to deal with any abuse of the benefits system."

Officially, Britain's interior ministry, the Home Office, says it expects up to 13,000 people to enter the country every year as a result of EU enlargement.