Care UK, the operator of NHS treatment centres, plunged 119p to 361p after the Department of Health cancelled a contract it had to run a planned diagnostics centre in the West Midlands, saying it was no longer needed. Care said it did not yet know how much compensation it could seek.

Greatfleet, the troubled recruitment group, lost 16 per cent to 3.875p as it revealed that the “certain matters” it had been investigating included unauthorised loans from the company to a private firm owned by former managers, breached banking convenants with its lender, overstatement of revenue and understatement of costs. There had also been unprofitable commission rates and one-off loyalty bonuses paid to some senior recruitment consult-ants, it said.

Enova Systems, the supplier and developer of electric propulsion systems, dived 39½p to 252½p after it cautioned that it needed $7.6 million more cash than it had generated in the nine months to September.

Playwize was the top small-cap performer, up 1.625p to 2.875p after Lad-brokes launched its 3-D Poker which uses Playwize software under a two-year licensing deal.

Empyrean Energy jumped 6p to 42½p after long-awaited drilling results from its well in Texas showed gas, although it is not yet known if it can be commercially extracted.

Superscape, the mobile games developer, jumped after reporting a 31 per cent rise in quarterly revenues. Berkeley Scott, the recruiter for leisure and professional service companies, rose 4½p to 38p after revealing that the shake-up of its hospitality arm was bearing fruit.

Clean Diesel Technologies, the maker of filters for cars and lorries that has certification for London’s Low Emission Zone, continued its rise, up 87½p to a new high of 850p, as it unveiled its first quarterly profit of $651,000.

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