Labour Party Conference: day one:

Labour Party Conference: day one:; Frank Cousins (General Secretary, Transport & General Workers' Union (TGWU)) speech SOF - We do not single ourselves out as groups of people who should look after our own interests ... EXT Harold Wilson interviewed by Robin Day SOF - ... we debated inflation in July, we set out a very clear and positive programme, we would use a number of methods, monetary controls, also physical controls this government refuses to use, what we have got to do in our view, instead of having a big upsurge in investment and then a cut and a cut in production, we want to have it more selective, want to hold back the inessential investment, and inessential production so the real essentials can go ahead but that does mean control / - First thing we've got to consider is the use of import controls if we are going to continue in this situation where Germany has this very big balance of payments against the rest of the world, and we have got to warn them that we might have to put import restrictions on their goods unless they behave, like good creditors / On the home front I think the main control we shall need will be building licensing, there has been a great deal in the past few years of quite inessential building and investment going on ... / Price control we have certainly got to consider beacuse in my view we shall only deal in inflation if we can come to a proper understanding with the trade union movement, we can't do that unless we change a lot of the government's attitudes, budgetary policies, we have got to show them that we are planning the country in the interests of expanding production and expanding investment and above all we have got to satisfy them and their wives, and whole community that we are really going to tackle this problem of rising prices / - I think we have got to look at the whole cost of living problem as a whole, including monetary weapons and other things, we mustn't be afraid of using a temporary price freeze,...