Prime Minister Theresa May said in a speech on Tuesday, and her job is to get the right deal for Britain as it leaves the European Union. But Kevin Green, chief executive of The Recruitment & Employment Confederation, said the speech will be “cold comfort” to UK employers.

In a statement, Green said the government’s plan risks putting the jobs market in reverse by leaving the single market and curtailing access to workers from the EU.

“We must not underestimate the vital role that EU workers play across the economy”, Green said. “We need more nurses to care for our ageing population, more people with the skills to build houses, and seasonal workers to ensure that farmers can continue to deliver for British customers. The reality is that we have near-full employment; the idea that there are hundreds of thousands of UK nationals waiting in the wings to take these jobs is a fantasy.

“Instead of recognising this, the Prime Minister propagated the myth that immigration has had a negative impact on pay in the UK,” he said. “We call on the government to think through the proposed changes to immigration before it damages the jobs market and the future prosperity of the UK, and we are ready to work with government to help find solutions”.

Last week, The Guardian reported an Oxford University study that suggested, if migration into the UK was to be halted, then over the next five years, those coming up to retirement would have to work about one-and-a-half years longer just in order to maintain the UK’s current GDP output.

Professor Sarah Harper, the director of the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing and chair of the UK government’s foresight review on ageing societies, said: “The message from Brexit is if you don’t want immigrants, you’re going to have to work longer. That’s how the sums work.”

Alain Dehaze, CEO of Adecco, told Business Insider, how he is seeing Brexit uncertainty impact the UK, especially London, and where clients are cutting back on recruitment. Speaking at the World Economic forum in Davos, Dehaze asserted that, in order to stay attractive and competitive, Britain should take steps to ensure that skilled talent can move freely in and out of the country. Adecco, Dehaze states, are monitoring the situation and continue to help clients navigate this period of business uncertainty.