What the Sunday papers said

The Swedish parliament is to debate new legislation to allow the privatisation of state-owned companies including Vin & Sprit, owner of Absolut vodka. If the auction goes ahead, there is consensus among investment bankers and stock analysts that the US competition authorities would probably block Diageo. That would leave three serious bidders - Bacardi, Fortune Brands and Pernod Ricard - The Sunday Times​

Britain's leading casino operators have hired City solicitors Herbert Smith to launch a legal fight to help them compete with the 17 new casinos announced by the government last week. The British Casino Association, a trade body, has brought in the firm to examine the possibility of a judicial review of a move it says creates unfair competition - The Sunday Times​

Gordon Brown is to rewrite the rules for his flagship Real Estate Investment Trust regime just weeks after the scheme was launched. His farewell budget, expected next month, will make it easier for big companies to ring-fence their property income in tax-free Reits. A number of leisure companies looking at converting their property holdings may be tempted to take the plunge, including Mitchells & Butlers, Punch Taverns, Enterprise Inns and InterContinental Hotels - The Mail on Sunday​

Scottish & Newcastle is seeking compensation for losses of up to £70m in its damages claim against PricewaterhouseCoopers over a failed reorganisation of its distribution strategy. The Edinburgh-based brewer is understood to be seeking to recover from PwC some or all of the costs of the scheme including the resulting fall in operating profit over 2002 and 2003. It is taking the legal action only after two years of attempts to negotiate compensation for the losses - The Sunday Herald​

Satellite channel Setanta, which surprised the TV industry by winning the rights to broadcast live Premier League football last May, will be available on Freeview later this year for £11 a month. The move will represent a challenge to BSkyB, which has used its exclusive football rights to establish a dominant position in the UK pay-TV market. Setanta will broadcast 46 Monday night and Saturday evening games, which are not available on Sky, although its £10.99 monthly rate is described as an 'introductory offer' - The Observer​

More than 7,000 pensioners of Booker and Woodward Foodservice are being offered a one-off increase to their pensions in return for giving up future annual rises, in what is thought to be the first deal of its kind. Many companies are under pressure to limit their pension exposures. But this latest offer comes as Pensions Regulator Tony Hobman expresses concerns that some employers are attempting to cut their bills at members' expense - The Sunday Telegraph​