Mr Johnson made the remark on July 3 at the launch of the World Islamic Economic Forum, which will be held in London later this year.?

The Malaysian prime minister, Najib Razak, was asked how his country could persuade his ¡°less tolerant Muslim neighbours¡± of the importance of women at the top of business and society.

He responded by noting that in the latest intake of university students in Malaysia, 68 per cent would be women.

Mr Johnson interrupted, joking that the women ¡°have got to find men to marry¡±.

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The comment was greeted with laughter, but reporting of the comments on the website Snipe has led to many people taking to the microblogging site Twitter to accuse Mr Johnson of sexism.

A number of the responses have interpreted Mr Johnson as implying that all women who go to university do so to find a husband.

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They have also referred to past claims that Mr Johnson was disrespectful towards female members of the London Assembly.

paul.jump@tsleducation.com