They include a labour-contract law that came into effect on January 1st and which many employers fear could make it much harder to fire underperforming workers.

ECONOMIST: Populist politics in China

In its plea for bail-out funds last month, the company promised to shed up to 31, 000 jobs, close nine plants and renegotiate a four-year labour contract which it signed with the United Auto Workers (UAW) in 2007.

ECONOMIST: The car industry

LTV's labour contract to high-ranking union officials.

ECONOMIST: Lessons from the death of LTV

As Mr Field put it, the 10% ruse violated the implicit contract between the New Labour modernisers and their parliamentary foot-soldiers: look after the needy, the rank-and-file said, and we'll trust you on the rest.

ECONOMIST: Bagehot

As firms cut back, the proportion of full-time contract jobs has fallen from almost 80% of the labour force in 1990 to 66% in 2007, according to the OECD.

ECONOMIST: Twenty years on Japan is still paying its bubble-era bills

The Audit Commission's report warned the Labour-controlled council it must improve in its compliance with contract procedure rules, demonstrating good value for money, reporting to elected members and dealing with whistleblowers.

BBC: Wirral Council officers suspended over highways contract

"The largest security company in the world, providing a contract to their biggest UK client, turned years of carefully-laid preparations into an 11th-hour fiasco, " Labour MP Mr Vaz said.

BBC: MPs call on G4S to forgo ?57m fee after Olympics failure