HOW patients perceive and rate the quality of their care while being treated by the National Health Service will, in future, affect the funding of hospitals and general practitioners in England. Information on “service quality” will also be displayed on new “dashboards” in hospitals, GP surgeries and on the worldwide web.

Unions have rallied to Labour to ensure that the party is rescued from financial and political bankruptcy.

THE European Court of Justice has ruled against the European Trade Union Congress in a case brought by the European Commission. The court upheld a complaint that the manner in which Luxembourg has implemented the posting directive is an obstacle to the free provision of cross border services.

THE Government’s public sector pay policy came under new pressure from unions this week, as council workers in Unison voted to go on strike while the GMB said it wanted to renegotiate wages for National Health Service staff.

LABOUR chiefs have been forced to resort to auctioning dates with “star” attractions in order to plug gaps in the party’s finances.

A BROAD reservoir of “stealth support” for Tory David Davis’ campaign against 42-days detention of terrorist suspects has sprung up among Labour MPs.

THE Labour-trade union link has been preserved in a white paper on party funding published by Justice Secretary Jack Straw this week. The paper suggests they should better inform members about political funding.

AFTER 15 years of continuous growth in the housing sector the House Builders Association has warned that fewer than 110,000 new homes are likely to built this year.

LABOUR’S affiliated trade unions have this week drawn up their demands for the party’s policy commitments at the next general election. The “Warwick Two” agenda, named after the 2004 Warwick Agreement, will be considered by Labour’s National Policy Forum next month. But a source close to discussions told Tribune that unions are also pressing for meetings with Number 10, one of which is expected next week.

KATE GREEN, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, says the failure of the Government to meet its targets on child poverty in Britain is a “moral disgrace”.