THE number of teenagers who took French and German at A level fell to the lowest yet, despite more students entering for exams overall than ever before.

The numbers studying maths and science recovered slightly.

Just 14,484 pupils studied French and 5,901 studied German.

Business leaders cautioned that trade would be harmed unless the decline were reversed, as Britain would be increasingly unable to win deals abroad.

However, the Government insisted that with a total rise overall of 473 people studying languages — including Spanish, Italian, Mandarin and Russian — students are simply choosing different courses.

Amid the celebration of the 23rd year-on-year increase in A-level passes to 96.2 per cent and A grades up to 22.8 per cent, Ellie Johnson Searle, director of the Joint Council for Qualifications, admitted that the outlook for the study of European languages was not so rosy. “It’s a stark picture for French,” she admitted, adding: “Those figures have halved in the past ten years”.

Since 1992, the number studying French A level has dropped by nearly two thirds, from 31,261. For German, the drop is a third.

However, as the interest in Spain and the so-called Beckham effect show no signs of wearing off, Spanish overtook German for the first time with 6,230 entries at A level.

At the same time, more than 2,000 students took Mandarin and those taking AS level rose by almost 10 per cent to 3,596.

Neil Bentley, the head of skills and employment for the CBI, acknowledged the modest rise but said that in general the low numbers were a worrying sign of complacency.

He said: “With only 4 per cent studying them, it underlines a move away from speaking foreign languages, back to a British arrogance where English is the only language of use.But in reality just talking English doesn’t cut the mustard, so if we don’t have young people with language skills, we’re not going to win the deals.”

In Germany, it is compulsory to learn two languages from the age of 6 to leaving school. Thomas Matussek, the German Ambassador in London, said that while he did not feel Britain was anti-German, he was concerned about the consequences of young people turning their backs on languages.

He said: “I do fear that young people who don’t know enough about Germany, for instance, could become xenophobic . . . which in turn leads to distorted pictures and severe misunderstandings. This is how wars are born and was the sad story of France and Germany for centuries.”

David Hart, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, gave a welcome to more students learning Spanish and Mandarin, but believed the shortage of teachers in both subjects would take its toll.

He said: “I fear the situation will only get worse before it gets better. Remember, it’s not till 2010 that all primary school children will have the right to study modern foreign languages.”

Perhaps the biggest surprise was in religious studies, where A-level numbers have more than doubled since 1992 to 16,859.

The Rev John Gay, the religious education consultant to the Church of England,said that more than half of all GCSE students now take religious studies.

He said: “These figures reflect a growing recognition among young people that an understanding of the religious and spiritual dimension of life is interesting, challenging and increasingly relevant in today's global society. Indeed, RE has a vital role to play in developing a cohesive and stable society in this country.”

So long in the doldrums, this year’s A-level figures also appeared to hint at a reversal in the downward trend of people taking up maths, biology and chemistry.

However, while maths has witnessed its second consecutive rise, the Royal Society gave warning that the country was still facing a crisis, noting that for maths numbers were still 21.5 per cent below those in 1991 and for physics the entries were 35 per cent lower.

Lord May of Oxford, the president of the Royal Society said: “We will not be able to meet the needs of employers and enjoy a strong economy in the UK if we do not have sufficient numbers of people trained and qualified in science and mathematics.”

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