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Top brass want more cash for science class

CBI floats £1k annual spod stipend

Top business leaders have called for science and engineering undergrads to be given an extra £1,000 per year to help reverse the decline in Britain's pool of technical talent.

According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the golden carrot would tempt the youth away from claptrap like David Beckham studies and French.

The lobby group also proposes the brightest 40 per cent of 14-year-olds automatically do separate sciences at GCSE, extra funding for careers advice, investment in school science labs, and more specialist science teachers.

CBI chief Richard Lambert said: "Some employers are already finding it difficult to get the right talent, and the problem is set to get worse. The UK cannot compete with the developing world on low-skilled jobs, so to thrive in the global market we must excel in the higher-skilled roles that demand expertise and innovation."

The CBI reckons young people are unaware of the extra cash they'll earn in a technical career as compared to something useless like, say, journalism. Chemistry and physics graduates can expect to bag an extra £60,000 over the course of their career on average.

Industry leaders made the call in time for the annual Decline of the British Empire (as measured by exam results)™ season that kicks off on Thursday. ®

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