The government has come under fire for failing to tighten the laws on the arms trade.

Speaking on Friday, Labour MP for Kingswood Roger Berry complained that ministers appeared to have ignored the inquiry's recommendations.

In its report in May, the Commons quadripartite committee - made up of MPs charged with scrutinising matters of international development, trade, defence and foreign affairs - claimed secondary legislation, aimed at improving the existing Export Control Act, failed to prevent British arms dealers from selling arms to war zones.

Such a transaction could be completed legally by them travelling overseas, the report argued.

"The arm of the law should reach out to British subjects based overseas who are involved in all those aspects of the arms trade which any civilised nation would regard as reprehensible - including the proliferation of small arms," it read.

Roger Berry said there was a massive human cost to the government's failure.

"Failure to control all arms trafficking and brokering by UK citizens means that British-sold weapons will continue to end up being used to slaughter civilians, violate basic human rights and destroy lives in conflicts across the world," he said.

The government had missed a "crucial chance" to improve arms trade laws, he added.

"Our committee urged the government to tighten up the act. Tragically, they appear to have ignored our recommendations and brushed aside our concerns," he said.

"At a time of growing concern over gun crime in this country and terror around the world, we should be seizing every available opportunity to tighten up our arms controls.

"The government have missed a crucial chance to make the world a safer place."

Berry's comments have been backed by a coalition of human rights charities.

"The broken promises will mean lost lives as British-sold weapons continue to get into the wrong hands," said Oxfam director Barbara Stocking.

"The failure of the British government to clean up its act, or to honour its election promise shows the urgent need for international controls on the arms trade."

Amnesty International described ministers' inaction as "scandalous".

"At a time when Britain is seeing at first hand the deadly effects of the unregulated trade in guns, it's scandalous that the British government is failing to clamp down on British arms dealers flooding other countries' streets with weapons," said the organisation's media director, Lesley Warner.

"Only an arms trade treaty can plug all the gaps that national governments seem unable or unwilling to fill."