RECRUITMENT issues are hampering the ability of regulators to function post-Brexit, MPs warned today.

The Commons public accounts committee said that regulators are “struggling to recruit and retain the skills they need to regulate effectively” amid growing demand following Britain’s exit from the EU.

The group of MPs highlighted a shortage of vets to monitor food safety and animal welfare in abattoirs, as well as toxicologists to assess food risks and chemical safety.

Lawyers and economists are also in short supply to enforce competition law.

Committee chairwoman Meg Hillier said: “Six years after the Brexit vote and with key international trade agreements still dangling years out of sight, repeated delays to implementing a new import regime continue to impact British businesses and increase risks for consumers.”

The Labour MP hit out at the government’s “poor preparation and planning,” which she said have “combined with international political realities and the result is exposure of consumers and businesses to greater risks and costs.”

She said: “Regulators and policy departments should now identify the impact of potential cuts on regulatory risk and set out where significant changes in the regulatory model would be needed to mitigate them.”