EPMU leaks letter that suggests a major line maintenance partner is popping at the seams, threatening phone and data lines. PLUS - RAW DATA: the Visionstream letter.

The Search and Surveillance Bill before parliament is a threat to journalistic freedom, the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union has warned.

The bill has previously drawn criticism in NBR from across the spectrum, with IT specialist lawyer Rich Shera (Bill that forces ISPs to spy needs re-write) and libertarian Thomas Beagle among those to weigh in against the legislation.

Labour Party president Andrew Little has doffed his EPMU boss hat to have a poke at the government.

As the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union national secretary, Mr Little will deliver a presentation on amendments to the Employment Relations and Holidays Amendment Bill to the Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee tonight.

The union has slammed proposed changes as unfair saying they are about giving employers control over the choices workers would otherwise be free to make.