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Vince Cable has accused David Cameron of "inflaming extremism" in a speech on immigration, but the prime minister said it reflected "Liberal Democrat policy".
In a keynote address on immigration this afternoon, the prime minister said he was putting in place the policy the entire country wanted of "firm and fair" border controls.
But the Liberal Democrat business secretary has said the words "risk inflaming extremism" and described the speech as "very unwise".
He told the BBC: "The reference to the tens of thousands of immigrants rather than hundreds of thousands is not part of the coalition agreement, it is Tory party policy only.
"I do understand there is an election coming but talk of mass immigration risks inflaming the extremism to which he and I are both strongly opposed."
Cameron told an audience in Romsey that he wants to see tighter controls on student visas and the number of skilled workers entering Britain.
He said that while the country will "always be open to the best and brightest from around the world" he wanted "good immigration, not mass immigration".
The prime minister attacked Labour for claiming it was racist to talk about immigration, saying it is "untruthful and unfair" not to speak about the issue, however uncomfortable.
He said that between 1997 and 2009 net immigration reached 2.2 million - "the largest influx of people Britain has ever had".
"The real issue is this: migrants are filling gaps in the labour market left wide open by a welfare system that for years has paid British people not to work," he said.
"That's where the blame lies - at the door of our woeful welfare system, and the last government who comprehensively failed to reform it.
"So, immigration and welfare reform are two sides of the same coin. Put simply, we will never control immigration properly unless we tackle welfare dependency."
The prime minister delivered a firm rejection of Cable's criticisms and said the policy was "agreed by the two parties working together".
"Coalitions do mean you have discussion and argument within your government, we've had those, we've settled the policy, we’ve agreed it," he said.
And he suggested the business secretary had deviated not only from coalition policy but from that of his own party when he told journalists at the event "this speech is Liberal Democrat policy".
Speaking to Radio 4's Today programme this morning, immigration minister Damian Green said the contribution that immigration policy can make and should make to Britain is "that we are open for business".
He confirmed that deputy prime minister Nick Clegg had seen the speech, adding: "The immigration limit on work visas was actually in the coalition agreement.
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