Women will "bear the brunt" of tasks ensuring survival when the effects of climate change bite, Hillary Clinton has warned.

Speaking at an event at Georgetown University in Washington, Ms Clinton criticised the US administration for its plans to take America out of the Paris Climate Change Agreement, urging students to put pressure on the Government.

Asked about the effect of climate change on women, Ms Clinton said: "I would say that particularly for women…  they will bear the brunt of looking for the food, looking for the firewood, looking for the place to migrate to when all of the grass is finally gone.

She pointed to desertification, which is expected to affect up to 30 per cent of the planet if global temperatures rise 2C above pre-industrial levels.

Crops are "burning up" in "the intense heat that we're now seeing reported across North Africa, into the Middle East, and into India", she said.