The Conservative leader has promised cash subsidies for students taking unfashionable subjects in a speech at Cambridge University.

Michael Howard returned to his alma mata on Friday to deliver the address in a bid to show how the Tories would tackle Britain's skills shortages.

He pledged that under a Tory government 10,000 undergraduates who study subjects, such as chemistry, physics, engineering and foreign languages will get bursaries of up to £2,000 towards their costs.

The move comes amid concern that the UK is failing to train enough workers in these areas to meet the needs of the economy.

While universities continue to offer courses, many are under-subscribed as school leavers increasingly shun sciences in favour of the arts.

"If our universities are to continue to be centres of international excellence, then we must protect in particular some of the core subjects on which that international excellence depends," Howard said. 

"In too many institutions, the future of important subjects is under threat. Areas like maths, physics, engineering and chemistry are struggling to attract good students, and some universities have even closed departments because of the lack of interest in doing such subjects.

"The next Conservative government will tackle this decline. We will pay for this by scrapping several important elements of the bureaucracy that universities complain so much about.

"We are currently discussing which subjects should be our most immediate priorities with people in our Universities and the world of science. We will also be inviting the private sector to join us in helping to fund the new scheme. If they do, we will be able to expand the number of bursaries and the range of subjects covered.

"It is in the interests of both government and employers to ensure that we have a strong base of science in this country for the future."

The Tory scheme will see the £2,000 paid upon the successful completion of a degree course.

The money would be deducted from outstanding student loan debt or could be kept as cash if a graduate had not taken out a loan.

It would be funded by scrapping the new Office for Fair Access and cutting scope of the Higher Education Funding Council government inspections.