Donington Park chief executive Simon Gillett insists that the future of the British Grand Prix at 'his' circuit is safe, even if he does have to take advantage of the 'year out' being offered by Bernie Ecclestone.

Earlier this week, Ecclestone said that if Gillett is unable to complete the required modifications to the circuit in time, he would be "happy" to "skip a year", though it unclear how the fans, and the few teams currently scheduled to take part in the 2010 World Championship, might feel about his generous offer.

Continuing with his mantra that "all is well", "we are 100 percent committed", etcetera, etcetera, Gillet insists that he is the saviour of the British GP and that "all is well".

"The Donington Grand Prix is safe," Gillett told the BBC. "That's the most important thing I want to get out to people, and people need to realise that Donington is the home of Formula One going forward.

"We're talking to all the right people about all the right things and it's moving on very positively," he continued. "There was an announcement this week from Bernie that if we do have a problem he's prepared to wait a year rather than take it anywhere else. I've talked to a lot of local people, they want Donington to have the Grand Prix, and we're going to deliver that for them."

As he struggles to find the necessary funding, the more sceptical among us might suggest he contacts some of his local MPs and asks them to put the whole thing down on expenses. You never know.