Oona King, Labour MP for Bethnal Green and Bow, has been elected to the board of the British Council as vice-chair. She replaces Peter Mandelson, who had to forgo his recent appointment after being named secretary of state for Northern Ireland.
Sir John Kingman, 60, vice-chancellor of the University of Bristol, is to retire no later than August 31 2001 after more than 15 years in the post. The process for appointing his successor will start in November.
Lord (Ronald) Oxburgh, 65, rector of Imperial College since 1993, has had his contract renewed until March 2001.
Karen Forbes, reader in fine art at the University of Derby, has been appointed head of the school of drawing and painting at Edinburgh College of Art.
Colin Mercer, former associate professor in cultural policy and history and director of the institute for cultural policy studies at Griffith University, Australia, has been appointed professor of cultural policy at Nottingham Trent University. The faculty of humanities will appoint a reader in cultural policy to work with him.
Edward Bonner, a business consultant with Siemens Nixdorf, has been appointed founder non-executive chairman of the planned new Accountancy National Training Organisation.
Michael Hodd, professor of economics at the University of Westminster, has been appointed vice-chancellor of the private University of Bukoba in Tanzania.
John Smith, director of ER Consultants of Cambridge, has been appointed chief executive of CCDU Training & Consultancy Ltd, based at the University of Leeds. The company holds two government contracts for national programmes connected with initiatives in education.
London Guildhall University has expanded its legal practice course. Key appointments are: Gaon Hart, former lecturer at
the college of law, has been appointed associate LPC director, and Gavin Lowe, who has taught at Nottingham Law School and the College of Law, Sydney, is now associate director.
Robert Richardson, reader in physical chemistry at the University of Bristol, has been appointed to the chair in experimental condensed matter physics at the university.