The armed forces are overstretched and losing personnel faster than they can recruit.

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And the UK will not be ready to fight an all-out war unless ministers fix stockpile shortages.

A report by the Commons Defence Select Committee says: “UK stockpiles of munitions are far below the level required to counter with certainty a threat from the Russian Army.”

Its inquiry into Britain’s war readiness concluded that hollowing out of the armed forces since 2010 had undermined the UK’s war-fighting resilience.

Committee chair and Tory MP Sir Jeremy Quin said: “A steady, continuous drip of operations and ongoing commitments has meant the military is unable to devote sufficient training and resources to high-intensity warfighting.

“While able to deploy at short notice and to fulfil commitments, our inquiry found that readiness for all-out, prolonged war has received insufficient attention and needs intense ongoing focus.

“On top of this, the high tempo of operations and unrelenting pressure on our Services has led to a drop in retention, compounded by a period of low recruitment and difficulties introducing and maintaining capabilities, thereby creating a vicious cycle.”

It comes after Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said the world is “moving from a post-war to pre-war world” and the UK must ensure its “entire defence ecosystem is ready”.

He insisted the size of the Army will not dip below 73,000 under the Conservatives.