diff --git a/Lib/test/test_file.py b/Lib/test/test_file.py
index ff4996ae482..7a68b2f7203 100644
--- a/Lib/test/test_file.py
+++ b/Lib/test/test_file.py
@@ -123,6 +123,8 @@ class AutoFileTests(unittest.TestCase):
         except:
             self.assertEquals(self.f.__exit__(*sys.exc_info()), None)
 
+    def testReadWhenWriting(self):
+        self.assertRaises(IOError, self.f.read)
 
 class OtherFileTests(unittest.TestCase):
 
diff --git a/Misc/NEWS b/Misc/NEWS
index 98dae61c604..e247506af57 100644
--- a/Misc/NEWS
+++ b/Misc/NEWS
@@ -12,6 +12,9 @@ What's New in Python 3.1 alpha 0
 Core and Builtins
 -----------------
 
+- Added test case to ensure attempts to read from a file opened for writing
+  fail.
+
 - Issue #3106: Speedup some comparisons (str/str and int/int).
 
 - Issue #2183: Simplify and optimize bytecode for list, dict and set