Tory anger at Cameron's all-women shortlists

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In a surprise move he announced that from January, Conservative headquarters will prevent local branches picking men in some safe seats.

He aims to bump up the number of Tory women who make it to the Commons at the next general election from a current projection of just 30.

But Tim Montgomerie, the activists' champion who edits Conservative Home, said: "All women shortlists are fundamentally unConservative and they have no place in a party pledged to meritocracy and localism... We feared this would happen."

Appearing before a Speaker's Conference on the lack of women, black people and gays in the Commons, Mr Cameron admitted that his party had fallen behind.

"It's a real problem for Parliament and it's been an even greater problem for my party, and one that I desperately want to address and have tried to address," he said. Senior Tories said all-women shortlists would be imposed in some seats where vacancies arise after January. That could mean seats where MPs are driven out by expenses scandals.

Mr Cameron said there were "many very, very good women" who had not yet been selected despite being on the priority list that he brought in.

There are 19 women Conservative MPs at present. About 29 per cent of Tory candidates at the next election are female — but some are contesting unwinnable seats. Mr Cameron said that if he won by a majority of one, the current projection was that 30 women would be elected as Tory MPs.

At the same hearing today, Gordon Brown said Labour will adopt new measures to boost the number of black and minority candidates at the election.

Shortlists for some seats will contain a minority of black or Asian candidates.