David Cameron has been criticised by a Coalition minister for having too few women in his Cabinet.

Newly appointed Liberal Democrat Employment Minister Jo Swinson contrasted the UK Government with the UK's most profitable businesses.

Praising what she said had been the largest annual increase in women on company boards, she added "incidentally not in the Cabinet".

She used her speech at the LibDems' annual conference in Brighton to call for more progress on the role of women in the workplace.

Mr Cameron pledged to radically increase the number of women in high office when he came to power in 2010. At one point he said he wanted one in three members of his Cabinet to be female.

However, he fell far short of that number in his reshuffle last month. The problem has been compounded by a number of other recent gaffes on the subject of equality.

He faced intense criticism when he told a female Labour frontbencher to "calm down dear", and for suggesting that one of his own backbenchers was "frustrated", to howls of laughter from Tory MPs.

Ms Swinson, who is also Equalities Minister, reiterated a number of demands to which many Tory MPs are known to be opposed, including allowing parents to decide how they want to share leave after the birth of a child.