The Conservatives have today unveiled plans to create a new post of a cybersecurity minister in order to combat what they call the "growing threat" of online crime.

News of the scheme – which would see a single Home Office minister take charge of fighting internet crime and protecting government computer systems from attack – comes as shadow home secretary David Davis unveils a raft of policy ideas aimed at fighting internet criminals and terrorists.

Speaking at the E-Crime Congress in London, Davis outlined a series of plans that could be put in place if the party were to take power at the next general election.

"Cybercrime is a growing and serious threat to individuals, business and government," he said. "It is a problem that will continue to escalate as technology changes."

Aside from the creation of a new ministerial post, the Tories are also suggesting a number of other initiatives such as the creation of a new centre where members of the public can report any online crime.

Elsewhere the proposals include the creation of a Police National Cybercrime Unit – essentially a re-instatement of the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit, which was folded into the Serious and Organised Crime Agency in 2006 – and the formation of a unit of cybercrime specialists inside the Crown Prosecution Service.

The party is also putting forward the idea of compelling financial institutions to tell privacy watchdogs when they suspect their systems have been compromised, and considering a new offence of "reckless handling of personal data by government".

This proposal, which capitalises on recent privacy debacles – including the loss of discs containing millions of personal bank details by HMRC – would make it a criminal offence for any civil servant or government contractor to lose an individual's personal data.

Much of the Tory plan seems loosely modelled on a recent report into internet security by the House of Lords science and technology committee.

Richard Clayton, a computer security researcher at Cambridge University and adviser to the committee, said he broadly welcomed the proposals but said more could be done to protect ordinary users.

"They've concentrated on the prosecution of e-crime, police and justice and missed some of the suggestions that you need to fix the incentives to build systems that are safer by design," he said.