The gypsies returned to Greece on Wednesday night

The workers say they were not paid and had to survive on meagre rations during their time in the Hayle area.

But on Friday the boss of the firm which brought the flower pickers over said his business was totally legal.

He also claimed the workers simply did not want to work.

The man, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: "They would pick one box or two boxes.

"Half of them would stay home so it's difficult for them to make any money.

No complaints

"You can't put 50 people in small Cornish homes, so I constructed MoD military tents with proper bedding, beds and sleeping bags.

"They didn't have a problem with it. They had a problem with the job."

He said he had gone to considerable expense paying for the workers to travel to Cornwall from the northern Greece village of Sofadas, but he had not tried to cut corners when they arrived.

The Greek embassy, acting on a request from the workers, co-ordinated their return on Wednesday night from their accommodation at the Marsh Lane industrial estate in Hayle.

Devon and Cornwall Police were on hand to help, but have received no complaints from the workers.

Many Cornish flower and bulb farms rely on foreign workers and local MPs have raised concerns about an alleged influx of illegal workers.