Prime Minister Harold Wilson Name Frank Cousins Preceded by Office Created Role British Politician | Preceded by Frank Bowles Party Labour Party Political party Labour Succeeded by Tony Benn | |
Born 8 September 1904
Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, England ( 1904-09-08 ) Died June 11, 1986, Chesterfield, United Kingdom Books Review of the Central Training Council: Report of a Committee Under the Chairmanship of the Rt. Hon. Frank Cousins | ||
Frank Cousins Retires (1969)
Frank Cousins PC (8 September 1904 – 11 June 1986) was a British trade union leader and Labour politician.
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He was born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, and became a member of the road transport section of the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) in 1933, before becoming a full-time official in July 1938. He was appointed National Secretary of Road Transport (Commercial) Group in October 1948, contested the TGWU Assistant General Secretaryship in 1948 and 1955, securing the position on the latter attempt. He was also elected to the Labour Party's National Executive Committee the same year, but resigned in March 1956.
Cousins was appointed acting General Secretary of the TGWU in February 1956, due to poor health on the part of Jock Tiffin. He was elected General Secretary in May 1956, following Tiffin's death, and held the position until 1969. From 1956 to 1969, he was a member of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress and was President of the International Transport Workers' Federation from 1958 to 1960 and 1962 to 1964.
Cousins served as Minister of Technology in Harold Wilson's Labour government from October 1964 until his resignation on 11 June 1966 to protest a Government-backed law freezing incomes and prices. His appointment as a Minister was notable as he is only one of two recent Ministers (the other being Patrick Gordon-Walker) who was appointed to the role without being either a Member of Parliament or a member of the House of Lords. He was also made a Privy Counsellor in 1964.
He was elected Member of Parliament for Nuneaton at a by-election in January 1965 and remained an MP until November 1966. During this period Harry Nicholas took over as acting general secretary of the TGWU.
Personal life
He married Annie Judd in December 1930; the couple had four children: John, Brenda, Michael and Frances.
Frank Cousins sat for sculptor Alan Thornhill for a portrait in clay. The correspondence file relating to the Frank Cousins bust is held in the archive of the Henry Moore Foundation's Henry Moore Institute in Leeds and the terracotta remains in the collection of the artist.