The Pope said on Friday that education and a fairer distribution of Britain's wealth were key to avoiding a repeat of last month's riots, the worst unrest England has seen in decades.

Benedict XVI referred to the summer violence in an address following an audience with newly-appointed British ambassador to the Holy See Nigel Marcus Baker.

When government policies do not presume or promote objective values, the pontiff said, "the resulting moral relativism... tends instead to produce frustration, despair, selfishness and a disregard for the life and liberty of others."

"Policy makers therefore are right to look urgently for ways to uphold excellence in education, to promote social opportunity and economic mobility, to examine ways to favour long-term employment and to spread wealth much more fairly and broadly throughout society."

The August riots, which began after police shot 29-year-old Mark Duggan in Tottenham, north London, saw thousands of masked youths in London, Birmingham, Manchester and elsewhere involved in widespread looting, arson and violence that left five people dead.

AFP