Frank Cousins

Frank Cousins PC (8 September 1904– 11 June 1986) was a British trade union leader and Labour politician.

He was born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, and became a full-time official in the road transport section of the Transport and General Workers' Union 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 in July 1966. He was also made a Privy Counsellor in 1964. He was elected Member of Parliament for Nuneaton from a by-election in January 1965 until November 1966. During this period Harry Nicholas took over as acting general secretary of the TGWU.

He married Annie Judd ('Nance') in December 1930 and had four children: John, Brenda, Michael and Frances.

Frank Cousins sat for sculptor Alan Thornhill for a portrait [ [http://alanthornhill.co.uk/sm_010.htm portrait head of Frank Cousins] image of sculpture] in clay. The correspondence file relating to the Frank Cousins bust is held in the archive [http://www.henry-moore-fdn.co.uk/matrix_engine/content.php?page_id=584 HMI Archive] of the Henry Moore Foundation's Henry Moore Institute in Leeds and the terracotta remains in the collection of the artist.

References