Aleksander Bochenski, president of Run Chlodnia, a frozen foods producer in central Poland, recalls a conversation with a tearful worker who told him he was planning to move to western Europe because the salary he was earning in Poland was too low.

“His wife was looking at their friends, who are working in England and Ireland, and was complaining that their children had computers and good clothes while he was barely able to make ends meet,” says Mr Bochenski.