Cumbria's hospitality industry has slammed a suggestion that employers might have to pay a £1,000 levy to employ EU workers after Brexit.

Tim Rumney, vice chairman of the Lake District Hotels' Association, said the introduction of such a fee would be a “devastating blow”.

The proposal is not official government policy.

But a £1,000 immigration "skills charge" is being brought in from April for firms recruiting workers from outside the EU.

And Immigration Minister Robert Goodwill told peers that a similar levy for EU workers "may be something that has been suggested to us could apply".

Mr Rumney said: “Enforcing this fee will be nothing short of devastating for the hospitality industry, an industry that contributes around £143 bn to the UK economy and provides employment for 4.6 m people.

“ Several of our member hotels employ European workers, many of whom have worked their way up through the ranks to management positions and built careers for themselves here and are now fearing for the future of their jobs.

“ We are already struggling to fill positions from food and beverage service right up to heads of department because of an absence of good applicants.

“ This policy would pull the rug out from under our ability to employ quality staff from overseas and add even more cost and red tape into our industry.”

T he levy is designed to reduce employers ' reliance on migrant labour and encourage them to train local workers instead .

But Mr Rumney added: “We are already witnessing fears among our member hotels, which are losing members of staff because of Brexit concerns.

"This can only worsen if further financial strain is put on hoteliers employing EU workers.

“ What we now need to see is some form of clarity and reassurance on how Brexit will affect European workers in the UK.”

The Lake District Hotels' Association is made up of 34 hotels and 20 attractions.

They include the Crown Hotel at Wetheral , the North Lakes Hotel in Penrith and Armathwaite Hall at Bassenthwaite.