Oldham MEP Chris Davies is calling on local Muslim women to make a stand against burkas.

His comments follow attacks by French president Nicolas Sarcozy on the garment worn to cloak the body.

Mr Davies, who lives in Greenfield, said: "It is time to speak out against a dress code that reduces women to subservience."

Although he agreed people should have the right to wear what they wish, he added: "There is no mention in the Qur’an of the burka and I believe that it does not belong in 21st century Britain. I have a passionate belief that women and men are equals.  In my experience, the burka acts as a mask, reducing identity and discouraging women from developing their own skills and personality."

A spokesman for the Oldham branch of the Young Muslim Organisation replied: "Islam doesn’t force or impose anything on any one. It gives people the right to choose. Therefore, the idea of Muslim women wearing a burka is a choice they have personally made. I think we need to look at the extremes from people wearing near to nothing to people wearing a lot.  What disappoints me more than anything is that these comments have been based on very little understanding of the religion and culture."