A senior Tory minister has dismissed claims made in a new book which accuse him of ridiculing women MPs with sexist behaviour and comments.

Nicholas Soames, Conservative MP for Mid Sussex, denies he made "crude and vulgar" remarks in the Commons.

He said the claims were absolute nonsense.

The allegations are made in the book Women In Parliament, The New Suffragettes, which looks at the increasing influence of women in Parliament since the 1997 general election.

The book claims Mr Soames, 57, a married father of three, taunted women MPs by muttering about their legs or breasts when they stood up to speak in the House.

Labour MP Barbara Follett said: "Some Conservatives, whenever a Labour woman got up to speak, they would take their imaginary breasts in their hands and wiggle them and say 'melons' as we spoke."

Women MPs hit back shouting "click" at Mr Soames. Mrs Follett said: "We devised this little 'click' gesture because his ex-wife had this story that being made love to by Nicholas Soames was like having a very large wardrobe with a very small key falling on top of you."

Author Boni Sones said: "He was repeatedly named by women as somebody who had belittled them.

"The House of Commons is a professional workplace and this behaviour would not be acceptable in any other workplace so why was it allowed in the Commons?

"These are professional women standing up to make a point and his behaviour was to ridicule them.

"One member of his own party described him as an oaf."

In the book, six women MPs complained about Mr Soames' alleged behaviour.

Former Lib Dem MP Jackie Ballard said Mr Soames made sexist remarks and called women MPs lesbians.

Mr Soames said: "This is absolute rubbish. I've never heard such nonsense in my life.

"They're obviously just trying to sell a book and I don't know either of these ladies that I'm meant to have spoken to.

"I have a great many women friends on the Labour side of the House and I count such cabinet members as Margaret Beckett and Tessa Jowell among them.

"The accusations are completely untrue and I reject them totally.

"There's a lot of good-natured banter in the House of Commons and a lot of people don't like it but this type of language just doesn't play a part in it."