Sevenoaks and Swanley MP and Cabinet minister Michael Fallon has admitted he was "a bit careless" to suggest towns risk being "swamped by huge numbers of migrant workers”.

But the Defence Secretary maintained the "large number" of immigrants coming from the continent was putting pressure on housing and essential services in the UK.

Under pressure from UKIP and with a by-election looming in the Rochester and Strood constituency, Mr Fallon ramped up Tory rhetoric on the issue during his Sky News interview on Sunday (October 26).

He said some areas felt "under siege" and action was needed "to prevent whole towns and communities being swamped by huge numbers of migrant workers".

A Government source said the Defence Secretary should have "chosen his words better" as Downing Street sought to calm the situation following Mr Fallon's comments.

But the minister stood by the substance of his remarks as he acknowledged he had been careless in his choice of language.

Mr Fallon told Sky News today (October 27): "I was a bit careless with my words, I accept that.

“But, yes, there is pressure now, there are a large number of people coming here from the rest of Europe - this is one of the more successful economies in Europe and there is pressure as a result of that migration on social services, on housing, on school places for example.

"That's what the Prime Minister will be addressing when he puts forward his proposals for some kind of control."

Labour's Keith Vaz, chairman of the influential Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, said Mr Fallon's original comments had been "nasty, inappropriate and wrong".

Mr Fallon told the News Shopper: “What I meant was that there is huge pressure on our system now on housing, on school services, from the big jump that there’s been in migration from other European countries.

“That’s something the Prime Minister is going to be addressing in the proposals he’s going to put forward shortly.

“I was just careless in the words that I used."

It is not the first time the politician has waded into hot water through his choice of words.

He attracted controversy in July after allegations he had called a Telegraph columnist a "slut".

Mr Fallon denied this.