Car sales in Britain this year are set to slump to their lowest levels for five years. Last month registrations fell 7.9% to just under 158,500 cars, leaving registrations for the year to November down 5.8% at 2.28m, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said.

The SMMT predicts that the year's new car market will fall below 2.5m for the first time since 2000. The collapse of MG Rover remains a significant influence. British cars saw a 14.5% fall in November and are down more than 10% so far this year. Diesel cars accounted for 42.2% of sales last month. The Ford Focus was the best selling model.