Second break for Mini production

The Christmas shut-down at the plant has been extended to four weeks

The Mini production plant in Oxford is to stop production for an extra three days in January, unions have confirmed.

Work at the site stopped on Sunday for an extended four-week Christmas break due to a fall in sales.

The plant will now shut down between 9-11 January - five days after workers return from the Christmas break on 5 January.

All staff at the plant, including agency workers, will be paid their basic wages over the shutdown.

BMW, which owns and operates the factory, has said it is responding to economic conditions. Mini sales in the UK are down 58% this month and the total UK car market is 11% down this year.

Many staff are looking for work over the festive period, when they will miss out on overtime due to the four-week break.