Business and local government joined forces this week in last- ditch attempts to persuade the government to include Best Value legislation in next month's Queen's speech.
Chancellor Gordon Brown has denied that the worldwide crisis in financial markets and the possibility of a UK recession threaten the government's extra funding commitments on health and education.
More than £1m has been received by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) in compensation for 46 of its members who were encouraged to leave the Teachers' Pension Scheme for private pensions.
Fundamental changes to welfare reform are likely to be deferred again because of a backlog of legislation that is to be included in the Queen's speech later this year.
Local government minister Hilary Armstrong has urged councils to refurbish rather than build new homes with the new money from the Comprehensive Spending Review.
The NHS Executive is to clamp down on health authorities and trusts that do not put enough cash aside to cover clinical negligence claims against them.
