Two-thirds of Scottish trainee primary teachers don't have the basic maths skills required to teach the subject at school, according to new research.

A study of first year student teachers found that while 98% of them ranked basic numeracy skills as the most important to have, online maths tests proved that 65% "did not possess them". Confidence levels in maths were also low.

This was despite the fact that a condition of entry into the primary teaching course is to have either Standard Grade maths at credit level or an Intermediate 2 exam. Many of the 80 students from Dundee University who took part in the study had a maths Higher.

Researchers at Dundee University, who unveil their findings today, called for a revamp of qualifications to include more basic maths.

They believe the paper highlights the need for a mandatory maths test for all primary teachers as a condition of their registration with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) - a practice which has been adopted in England.

The report, which will be presented to the annual conference of the Scottish Educational Research Association in Perth, says: "If we wish potential primary teachers to be able to teach this particular curricular area effectively then their mathematics foundation should be such that they feel confident in their skills and be able to demonstrate competence."

It adds: "Our data suggests that current mathematics qualifications in Scotland do not guarantee this."

The research is likely to re-ignite debate over whether maths taught in schools provides a sufficient preparation for more advanced study and for use in life more generally.

Jack McConnell, the former First Minister, suggested in the run-up to May's election that Scotland needed a compulsory arithmetic exam for secondary school pupils.

Sheila Henderson, a teaching fellow at Dundee University's school of education and one of the report's authors, said the study had implications for National Qualifications. "We are going to have to assess whether we need to have changes to the school curriculum and whether there is a place for a numeracy-based qualification such as the former O grade exam," she said.

Her colleague Professor Susan Rodrigues, chair in science education at Dundee University, said the findings had implications for universities which train teachers.

"In England and Wales, before teachers qualify, an online numeracy test must be passed, but there are no moves to adopt such an approach in Scotland," she said.

"Desire to ensure teacher education institutions have autonomy in how they run their courses is at the heart of the current situation, but the need for a more standardised approach in the area of maths is perhaps desirable."

A spokesman for Glasgow University, which trains hundreds of primary teachers, defended the quality of courses. "Fewer than 1% of probationary teachers fail to meet the standards required for full registration which suggests the maths component of the training and the availability of maths clinics for those teachers who need more intensive tutoring is adequate to ensure high standards are maintained," said a spokesman.

A spokesman for the GTCS said officials would examine the research. "The current registration process is producing the highest quality of teachers we have ever had in Scotland, but we are always interested in looking at how the system could be improved and we will look at this study."