Holders of public office may have to swear an oath of allegiance to British values, Communities Secretary Sajid Javid has suggested.

The pledge would be expected to cover elected officials, civil servants, and council workers.

Writing in The Sunday Times, Mr Javid said: "If we are going to challenge such attitudes, civic and political leaders have to lead by example.

"We can't expect new arrivals to embrace British values if those of us who are already here don't do so ourselves, and such an oath would go a long way to making that happen."

Mr Javid's proposal comes in response to a report on social cohesion by Dame Louise Casey, which warned some sections of society did not accept British values such as tolerance.

He said he was "drawn" to Dame Louise's recommendation to bring in an oath of allegiance because it was impossible for people to play a "positive role" in public life unless they accepted basic values like democracy and equality.

The new oath could include "tolerating the views of others even if you disagree with them", as well as "believing in freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from abuse".

Others phrases could include "a belief in equality, democracy, and the democratic process" and "respect for the law, even if you think the law is an ass," Mr Javid writes.

Mr Javid said his aim was not to create a "government-approved one size fits all identity" where everybody listens to the Last Night of the Proms, but "without common building blocks of our society, you'll struggle to play a positive role in British life".