David Cameron says ethnic discrimination 'shames universities'

New laws will force universities to disclose what proportion of ethnic minority applicants get places and in what subjects

David Cameron has appointed former Labour minister David Lammy to review discrimination in the justice system (Steffan Hill/BBC)

Britain should be “shamed” by the ethnic make-up of students at the country’s top universities, businesses and institutions, David Cameron has said, as he announced new plans to fight “insidious” discrimination.

Mr Cameron announced that new laws will be brought in to force universities to disclose what proportion of ethnic minority applicants get places and in what subjects. The new rules will require publication of data on applicants, broken down by course, gender, ethnicity and socio-economic background.

Mr Cameron has also appointed the former Labour minister David Lammy to review discrimination in the justice system, in particular why black offenders are more likely to be jailed than their white counterparts.

In an article for The Sunday Times, the Prime Minister said ongoing discrimination “should shame our country”.

“If you’re a young black man, you’re more likely to be in a prison cell than studying at a top university,” he wrote.

Mr Cameron said it is “striking” that Oxford’s 2014 intake of more than 2,500 included only 27 black students.