* The University of Hull has warned staff that compulsory redundancies are likely over the coming months to head off a financial deficit.
Stephen Morrison, director of human resources, said it was not clear how many job losses would be needed but a voluntary severance scheme had not produced enough. He blamed the situation on a Higher Education Funding Council for England settlement that amounted to a 1.7 per cent cut in real terms, coupled with the government's policy on research funding.