The BBC invited a third more pro-EU speakers than anti-EU speakers to appear during the election campaign, a report has revealed.

A survey of its news coverage during the period between May 3 and June 7 found that of 375 contributors, 189 were pro-EU or expressed negative opinions about Brexit, while just 140 were positive.

The report, carried out by media analysts News-watch and commissioned by a cross-party group of Eurosceptic MPs, also claims that BBC correspondents and presenters "one-sidedly emphasised the difficulties of Brexit" and that the BBC Reality Check team "put further undue weight on the disadvantages of leaving the EU".

It criticises high-profile figures such as BBC News political editor Laura Kuenssberg for describing negotiations as "mind-bendingly complicated" and economics editor Kamal Ahmed for saying there was a "squeeze on earnings caused by Brexit". Ahmed denies ever using these words.

It also found that the "left-wing arguments for Britain to leave the EU have been scarcely considered on the BBC’s flagship news programmes", where only one in 500 speakers were left-wing supporters of leaving the EU.

It argues that "had left-wing arguments for Brexit been properly aired, it is entirely feasible that a greater majority of the British people would have voted to Leave".