Responding to the latest migration figures, Ibrahim Dogus, Chair of the British Takeaway Campaign, said:

"Today’s statistics showing a further drop in EU net migration will worsen the skills shortages for the UK’s takeaway sector.

"With over a third of takeaway restaurants experiencing skills shortages, particularly for chefs in specialist cuisines, and more than a third saying Brexit will make it more difficult to recruit staff, this drop further puts at risk the sector’s potential growth of 13% by 2021 - which would see takeaways contributing £5.1bn a year to the economy.

"If we are to have a supply of chefs with the right skills to meet these shortages it is imperative that the Government allows for a transition period that gives sufficient time for the training of domestic workers.

"Even with a transition period, though, more needs to be done to overcome the recruitment gap. That’s why we are urging the Migration Advisory Committee to use its review of the Shortage Occupation List to address the absurd anomaly which allows for the recruitment of specialist chefs for restaurants, but, bizarrely, not for those working in takeaways”.