FILE PHOTO: British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon poses after an interview with Reuters at the British Embassy in Paris, France August 31, 2017. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain will pursue a balanced policy on immigration once it has left the European Union by seeking to attract high-skilled workers while driving the overall numbers down, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said on Wednesday.

The Guardian newspaper published a leaked government document late on Tuesday detailing plans to drive down the number of lower-skilled EU workers coming to Britain once it has left the EU in 2019.

“We’ll set out firm proposals later in the year,” Fallon told Sky News. “There is a balance to be struck, we want to attract to this country, not shut the door, on highly skilled people who want to come here and make a contribution to our society.

“Equally we have to make sure that British companies are also prepared to train and train up British workers. The public are very clear, they want to see immigration not stopped but brought properly under control.

“They also want to be clear that we implement what they voted for in the Brexit referendum.”