Tribune – Comment, news and reviews from Britain's democratic left

Councils were this week accused of throwing taxpayers’ money “down the drain” as it emerged that they are spending millions of pounds on the legal costs of considering women’s equal pay claims.

A senior aide to Gordon Brown has refused to confirm or deny several allegations that he is breaking Labour Party rules in order to win a parliamentary selection.

Fears of a growing threat to freedom of expression in Italy brought journalists and their supporters onto the streets in different parts of Europe last week, as pressure grew on embattled Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Unite assistant general secretary Les Bayliss was this week leading in a bid to win a nomination to run in next year’s general secretary election.

Managers at a National Health Service trust have dismissed as “absolute nonsense” claims by the Unite union that they are trying to privatise its community health division into a social enterprise without consulting staff.

The Centre for Local Economic Strategies has launched a blistering attack on the Conservative Party’s welfare proposals. It says: “The benefit blame game won’t work” and argues that welfare reforms must be linked to “the economic reality of deprivation in our communities”.

As talks to try to settle the refuse collectors’ strike in Leeds continued this week, the GMB and Unison promised they would not let the strikers “be starved into submission” and, after each putting another £25,000 into the strike fund, vowed: “Nothing can prevent us from prosecuting this dispute until we win – we will be here until Christmas, if need be.”