One of the leading contenders to replace Boris Johnson has promised to tackle ¡°pointless¡± and ¡°costly¡± degrees if she is chosen as the UK¡¯s next prime minister, as Conservative leadership candidates began to set out their positions on English higher education.

In a editorial, Kemi Badenoch, the former equalities minister, questioned why a degree was necessary for some professions, stating that she would ¡°make it easier to move into areas such as nursing, social [care] and policing without a typical degree¡±.

¡°One of the things that makes it hard for some people to get a good job is they demand costly degrees you actually don¡¯t need, forcing people into debt,¡± said Ms Badenoch, the Saffron Walden MP whose odds of succeeding Mr Johnson have shortened from as much as 100-1 to 10-1 over the past three days after positioning herself as an ¡°anti-woke¡± candidate.

According to a , Ms Badenoch is the second most popular candidate vying to become prime minster, behind only Penny Mordaunt, the former armed forces minister. Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, is the bookie¡¯s favourite among the 10 remaining Conservative hopefuls seeking to move into No?10, currently placed at 6-4.

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In her Sun editorial published on 11?July, Ms Badenoch said she would ¡°open more good jobs to talented people, help young people avoid crippling debt [from studying], and save money from this reform and across the board¡±.

She also signalled her intention to ¡°reduce the subsidy for low quality degrees¡±, writing, ¡°Why are we shovelling huge amounts of taxpayer money ¨C currently up to ?11?billion a?year into student loans ¨C that will never be paid back? That cannot be right.¡±

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The former software engineer, who has a degree from the University of Sussex, also claimed that ¡°some universities spend more time indoctrinating social attitudes instead of teaching lifelong skills or how to solve problems¡±.

Ms Badenoch has previously stated that she had been by the treatment of Kathleen Stock, the philosophy professor who quit Sussex after facing a campaign of harassment, including masked protests on campus, over her views on transgender issues. Ms Badenoch, who has been outspoken on the need for single-sex toilets in public buildings, said in October that ¡°nobody should face bullying or harassment in the workplace¡±.

Tom Tugendhat, the Tonbridge MP who is also a 10-1 shot, according to some markets, outlined a different vision for higher and further education in a speech on 12?July, stating that he would introduce a new Institute of Technology in every major town and city, the .

jack.grove@timeshighereducation.com