New figures on the representation of minorities in public office have disappointed campaigners who say not enough is being done to support people with disabilities.

The Cabinet Office has published two reports on the state of national and regional public bodies, setting out progress on selecting more women, ethnic minority and disabled candidates to serve on Britain's quangos.

In March 2001 there were over 29,499 people serving on 1025 non-departmental public bodies, of which 34 per cent were women (up from 33 per cent in 2000) and 4.8 per cent were from an ethnic minority community (up from 4.4 per cent on the previous year).

But with an estimated 8.6 million disabled adults in the UK, comprising one in five of the population, disability campaigners were angered that little progress is being made on full equality.

Disabled people made up just 1.5 per cent of public appointments last year, and while all government departments could provide figures on the recruitment of women and ethnic minorities, 12 out of 28 departments could not provide any information on the number of disabled people appointed to boards of public bodies.

"Many departments and agencies don't even know how many disabled people are in such positions. How is the inequality disabled people face ever going to be overcome while this situation exists?" asked Peter Mansell, chair of Engage, a campaign network which is encouraging greater representation for disabled people.

"Young people, women and people from ethnic minorities are being encouraged by the government to get involved in public life. But disabled people still seem to be invisible - despite our diverse range of experiences and skills," he added.

Engage argues that more could be done to make public appointments more accessible, including wider promotion of the jobs available, but puts the emphasis on the need for a shift in perceptions so that the under-representation of disabled people is taken as seriously as that of women and people from ethnic minorities.

"Engage is not campaigning directly for quotas or all-disabled shortlists," says the organisation, though it would welcome discussion on any new initiatives that would boost the participation of disabled people.

"Positive action isn't just quotas and shortlists, it can include less controversial activity that promotes disabled people's participation in public and political life," Engage says.

The government says its priorities are appointment on merit combined with the equal representation of men and women, pro rata representation of ethnic minority groups and "increased participation of disabled people".

"Equality of opportunity and appointment on merit remain our key principles. I am personally committed to making the opportunity to serve on a public body available to all, regardless of disability, age, ethnicity, gender, geographic or social background," said Cabinet Office minister Chris Leslie.

"Some progress has been made in recent years, but I believe that there is more work to be done to achieve the wider representation we want."

While the number of non-departmental public bodies has declined from over 2000 in 1979, the funds they spend have risen from just over £5 billion in 1979 to around £25 billion in 2000/01, making the issue of who runs them as important as ever.