Latest news

BL and Hefce announce strategic digital alliance
The British Library and the Higher Education Funding Council for England have announced a strategic alliance which they hope could see a single national digital information resource for the whole of academic and research communities of the UK.

500 fewer trainee teacher places for Scotland
Scottish universities have been shocked by a unexpected Scottish Executive decision to cut more than 500 teacher training places in the coming academic year. Institutions have already begun making legally binding offers of places following guidance that they should plan for a similar intake to this year, which saw an expansion of more than 400 places.

Nerc rethink to save £24m
The Natural Environment Research Council is looking to save £24 million before 2006 by reducing or withdrawing funding from current priorities. Over the next five years the council plans to prioritise climate change, the Earth's life support systems and sustainable energy, resource and land use.

Former London Lord Mayor takes over at Ulster
Ulster University has appointed the lawyer Sir Richard Nichols, a former Lord Mayor of London, as its new chancellor. Sir Richard, a member of the university court, succeeds Rabbi Julia Neuberger, who was chancellor from 1994.

Groundbreaking biological catalyst discovered
St Andrews University chemists and biomolecular scientists have discovered the world's first fluorinase enzyme, a biological catalyst which bonds carbon to fluorine and will be useful for creating compounds as diverse as Teflon and Prozac. The discovery by a team led by David O'Hagan is published in the latest issue of Nature .

War crimes judge to speak at Lincoln open day
The judge presiding over the trial of alleged war criminal Slobodan Milosevic will take a break from proceedings at The Hague to speak at the University of Lincoln next month. Richard May is a speaker at Do Yourself Justice, a free open day that aims to let members of the public find out more about the workings of the criminal justice system.