A £600,000 extension to a UK motorsport college in Bicester, Oxfordshire has been officially opened by David Richards, the CEO of the motorsport and automotive development company Prodrive, which is based nearby in Banbury.

The UK’s Santa Pod drag strip is to hold another Alternative Energy Race Dya following the success of the inaugural event in 2008.

The REC has announced that the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff (UWIC) has been awarded Working Towards the Quality Mark status.

The REC is the first professional representative body to receive endorsement for its sales training courses from the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management (ISMM).

The total number of people out of work has risen to 1.92 million, the highest level for a decade. This is an increase of 85,000 during the past month.

The REC has today underlined the strength of feeling within the recruitment industry against the proposed removal of the VAT staff hire concession with a hard-hitting letter and editorial in the Financial Times co-signed by eight of its largest members, which describes the change as “an additional tax on jobs”.