Farmers in Northern Ireland would suffer the most under a no-deal Brexit.

A report authored by Con Lucey for the Irish Institute of European Affairs (IIEA) said a hard Brexit would be “a doomsday scenario” for many UK farmers.

Without a deal, EU tariffs for British agricultural exports would be higher than those currently set out by the UK for the food it imports from EU countries, including Ireland.

The report said the reliance of Northern Irish farmers on North-South trade leaves them vulnerable, with the UK payments system also set to become “more focused on the environment than farming or food production”.

Irish beef, which currently accounts for 70% of UK imports, will have to compete with non-EU beef.

The report is timely, with the appointment of Boris Johnson as UK Prime Minister. He rejects the current withdrawal agreement, and will lead the UK out of the EU on 31 October. That means a crash-out unless a fresh deal can be agreed in less than 100 days.