Editor-At-Large: Go on, girl, ask that man what he earns and why

With Tories and Labour neck and neck in the polls, the next election should be fought on one major issue - equal pay. In spite of awarding themselves lavish salaries, pensions and expenses for a job that has plenty of holidays and ample time to pursue outside interests, it's funny how MPs fail to address the single most glaring anomaly in Britain: the fact that men and women can earn vastly different sums of money for doing the same job.

Since Labour came to power, for all their talk for female-friendly policies and the appointment of a minister for Women, the pay gap between men and women has narrowed by only 3.6 per cent for full-time workers and 2.5 per cent for those in part-time work - who will be mostly female. But the gaps are huge. Women in full-time work earn 17 per cent less per hour on average than men. For part-timers the difference in hourly rates is 41 per cent.

Margaret Prosser's commission, which tomorrow will produce its final report on issues affecting women at work, has backed down from recommending compulsory pay audits for the private sector. Instead, she is expected to propose that only private companies with public-sector contracts should, like public-sector organisations, undergo these audits - a lamentable example of bowing to pressure from employers.

OK, Labour brought in a minimum wage, but it is disgustingly low. In the end, women are always going to be victims of discrimination via their pay packets unless employers are forced to recompense people in a transparent and fair way. It should not be optional. Baroness Prosser wants more girls to be plumbers, bricklayers and electricians - all well-rewarded trades - and there's nothing wrong in that. But unless employers are compelled to pay women and men the same rate for the same job, women will always suffer. Look at the pay difference in the private sector for women working in banking, insurance and pensions: according to 2003 figures, they earn on average £12.55 an hour compared with the male average of £21.81.

I am fascinated by the middle-class obsession with buying food that has been grown under the Fair Trade scheme, which ensures that workers get paid a decent wage for the job, be it cutting flowers or picking vegetables in Africa or collecting coffee beans in South America. Right here in Britain, we should only be purchasing food from companies that pay women the same as men.

Women should realise that they wield huge economic and political clout. Start asking your bank what they pay their staff. Start asking your supermarket to verify that they treat men and women exactly the same. Demand that the businesses you patronise have pay audits and publish them. And don't vote for any party that doesn't put equal pay at the top of its agenda - any other promise is meaningless.

At the current rate it would take 140 years for male and female part-time workers to earn the same, proving that this government simply doesn't take equality seriously. Figures show that around one in four employees in Britain - that's 6.8 million - now work in the public sector. So why can't the Government demonstrate its commitment to women by publishing pay tables for every one of its contracts? And, with a considerable amount of work in the National Health Service, education and social services being contracted out to private companies, the Government can demand that all contracts are awarded to companies on the basis of equal pay and published audits of male and female earnings.

It's that simple. And women should not vote Labour unless this is in its manifesto. Why settle for being considered second best?

How about the Spandex and chiffon Olympics?

Is there any event more perfectly scheduled than the Winter Olympics? It coincides with two major events in my personal calendar, the arrival of credit-card bills reminding me of the Christmas overspend, and the lingering presence of those two extra inches around the middle of my body, the result of too much yuletide festivity.

This time of year always brings lorryloads of patronising twaddle from female journalists about "detoxing" and "getting back in shape". The reality is, there's snow underfoot, it's bloody freezing, and who can see those extra pounds under a thick coat and a couple of sweaters? A perfect opportunity to economise: stay in, lie on the sofa or on the living room floor in front of the television and get the flabby body back in shape by doing crunches and clenching your abdominal muscles while lusting after gorgeous skiers, snowboarders and speed skaters, every inch of their torsos outlined in skin-tight Spandex. Hoorah!

Mind you, the outfits worn by the figure-skating pairs this year have reached new levels of tastelessness. Men have chiffon scarves draped across their shoulders, women have flesh-coloured bodysuits so it looks like they are starkers except for a few strategic bits of rhinestone, and as for the hairstyles, we're talking Gary Numan or Steve Strange. One Israeli woman had red and blond striped hair to match her frock. I laughed so much I didn't realise I'd munched my way through a large bar of chocolate. The best entertainment on the box. Why not medals for best costumes?

Showbiz #1: The growth of an actor takes many forms

Look out for George Clooney in 'Syriana', which opens this week, with him playing a CIA agent in the Middle East. Much has been made of his "massive" weight gain for the role, and he's grown a thick beard to complete the transformation. I rather warmed to the new chunky George, with his rumpled clothes and spare tyre. Shame he dieted it all off to resume his matinée idol looks - and also that this well-intentioned film about corruption in the oil industry is so densely plotted that you need a degree in politics to appreciate all the points it is striving to make.

Showbiz #2: Mimi with added roller skates. Brilliant

I didn't think that Puccini's 'La Bohème', the story of Mimi, a penniless, dying consumptive, was an opera that would survive the Albert Hall treatment. How wrong! Francesca Zambello's clever staging (with a brilliant set by Peter Davidson) features waiters on roller skates, stylish lesbians, musclemen, sailors and schoolgirls and is set in a Parisian railway station in the 1940s. Majella Cullagh stops the show as an over-the-top torch singer. First performed in 2004, it's back until 11 March - and it beats most West End musicals hands down.

Showbiz #3:... and here's my nomination for a dead TV format

The Baftas attracted a television audience of three million viewers on BBC1, an appallingly feeble effort, the Brits only managed 4.5 million viewers on ITV, 20 per cent of its audience, and I expect rock-bottom figures for the 'NME' awards on Friday on Channel 4. Viewers are sick of award shows, and who can blame them? There are too many, the hosts are over-scripted and weak, and the acceptance speeches generally toe-curling.

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