diff -u python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control
--- python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control
+++ python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control
@@ -37,11 +37,11 @@
 Package: python2.7-minimal
 Architecture: any
 Priority: optional
-Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}
+Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}, python-minimal (>= 2.6.6-3+squeeze1)
 Recommends: python2.7
 Suggests: binfmt-support
 Replaces: python2.7 (<< 2.7.1~rc1-2~)
-Conflicts: binfmt-support (<< 1.1.2), python-minimal (<< 2.7.3)
+Conflicts: binfmt-support (<< 1.1.2)
 Description: Minimal subset of the Python language (version 2.7)
  This package contains the interpreter and some essential modules.  It can
  be used in the boot process for some basic tasks.
diff -u python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control.in python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control.in
--- python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control.in
+++ python2.7-2.7.3/debian/control.in
@@ -36,11 +36,11 @@
 Package: @PVER@-minimal
 Architecture: any
 Priority: @MINPRIO@
-Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}
+Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}, python-minimal (>= 2.6.6-3+squeeze1)
 Recommends: @PVER@
 Suggests: binfmt-support
 Replaces: @PVER@ (<< 2.7.1~rc1-2~)
-Conflicts: binfmt-support (<< 1.1.2), python-minimal (<< 2.7.3)
+Conflicts: binfmt-support (<< 1.1.2)
 Description: Minimal subset of the Python language (version @VER@)
  This package contains the interpreter and some essential modules.  It can
  be used in the boot process for some basic tasks.
diff -u python2.7-2.7.3/debian/changelog python2.7-2.7.3/debian/changelog
--- python2.7-2.7.3/debian/changelog
+++ python2.7-2.7.3/debian/changelog
@@ -1,3 +1,18 @@
+python2.7 (2.7.3-0ubuntu3) precise-proposed; urgency=low
+
+  * python2.7-minimal needs a versioned depends on python-minimal, not a
+    Conflicts.  Conflicts with essential packages, versioned or otherwise,
+    are a serious problem for upgrades, as the previous upload demonstrated. 
+    Instead, we allow a circular dependency between python2.7-minimal and
+    python-minimal, and rely on the fact that the package manager ensures
+    new versions of both packages will be unpacked before running the
+    maintainer script from python2.7-minimal.  LP: #986374.
+  * Our versioned dependency on python-minimal is 2.6.6-3+squeeze1, which is
+    the first version shipping a pycompile that supports passing a -V option
+    referring to a version python-minimal doesn't already know about.
+
+ -- Steve Langasek <steve.langasek@ubuntu.com>  Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:19:23 -0700
+
 python2.7 (2.7.3-0ubuntu2) precise-proposed; urgency=low
 
   * python2.7-minimal: Conflict with python-minimal (<< 2.7.3). LP: #983981.