BARROW and Furness MP John Woodcock has slammed bosses at South Lakes Safari Zoo and urged the government to review its process following the latest inspection.

The unannounced inspection last month recorded seven incidents of animals coming into contact with seven members of the public.

Mr Woodcock criticised Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd and highlighted the tragic death of a 24-year-old zookeeper in May 2013.

He said: "The fact that this inspection can take place at all shows the zoo licensing regime in England is broken and must be urgently reviewed by the government and a fit and proper person test created.

"It is an affront to basic decency that there is currently no way for this assessment to take into account the fact that senior figures in the zoo's current team played key roles in the last organisation that oversaw sickening abuses of animal welfare and the tragic death of Sarah McClay.

"Animals in zoos across the country will be at risk until ministers get a grip of the appallingly inadequate regulatory regime that fail property to safeguard the safety of creatures, staff and visitors."

The Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd was set up in January with former South Lakes Safari Zoo chief executive Karen Brewer at its helm. The company has a lease on the site and was granted a four-year licence to run the Dalton attraction in May.

The new management was brought in after zoo founder David Gill was found to be "not fit" to run the attraction.

Despite praising zoo-keepers for doing a "good job" in educating the public about safety, inspectors last month witnessed a number of contact incidents including one which involved a lemur climbing into a pram. The animal had to be removed by two zoo-keepers.

The report states there is still "considerable contact between lemurs and the public".

South Lakes Safari Zoo declined to comment.