Dec 28 - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Times

The government must make greater efforts to improve employment prospects for Britain's ethnic minorities if it is to hit its goal of creating two million new jobs by the end of the parliament without relying on immigration, the Resolution Foundation has warned. (http://thetim.es/1IxzpEc)

A consortium of 35 companies and research groups across Europe, including Boeing Co and Airbus Group SE, are working on a project, co-funded by the European Commission, that could eventually lead to an automated technology to reduce reliance on crew members on commercial jets. (http://thetim.es/1Ixzzvc)

The Guardian

Shoppers were more willing than ever to interrupt their Christmas Day revelry for some online bargain-hunting this year, delivering a festive boost for retailers. Sales on Christmas Day were up 21 percent on last year, making it the most lucrative ever for online shopping, according to data from a web services group PCA Predict. (http://bit.ly/1IxzTtX)

The Telegraph

Britain relies more heavily on foreign doctors than any other major European Union nation, according to international research. More than a third of NHS doctors were born abroad, according to a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (http://bit.ly/1IxAawS)

Ladbrokes Plc Chief Executive Jim Mullen issued a stark warning to the horseracing industry that bookmakers will be unable to funnel sponsorship back into the sport if they are forced out of the industry in a row over funding. (http://bit.ly/1IxAqvW)

Sky News

Residents of flood-hit villages in northern England have been urged to flee their homes amid concerns that lives are at risk. June Brown, a councillor in the Lancashire village of Whalley, which is waist-high in water, urged residents to leave the village immediately. (http://bit.ly/1IxANGO)

The Independent

The troubled part-privatisation of the probation service has taken another hit with one new owner, Working Links, planning hundreds of redundancies across the country. The group is understood to be planning 200 job cuts in the Welsh probation service alone. (http://ind.pn/1IxB1xL)

The UK's biggest care-home operator, Four Seasons Health Care, has sold 20 million pounds ($29.84 million) worth of properties to U.S-based Monarch Alternative Capital as it reportedly struggles with a debt burden and diving profits. (http://ind.pn/1IxBcsO)

($1 = 0.6702 pounds) (Compiled by Ismail Shakil in Bengaluru)