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CBI: 50 YEARS OF BUSINESS INNOVATION


TIMELINE hIGhLIGhTS FRoM ThE CBI’S FIRST 50 YEARS


1965 • The Confederation of British Industry officially comes into being on 30 July, bringing together the British Employers’ Confederation, the Federation of British Industries and the National Association of British Manufacturers.


• It was born into a world of state intervention and a time of rampant inflation, together with a severe balance-of-payments crisis.


1966 • Changes to taxes and regulation made life considerably more complex for businesses, and particularly for small firms.


• The CBI set up a Steering Group for Small Firms that later evolved into a fully-fledged council and, ultimately, into today’s Enterprise Forum.


1967 • A joint initiative with the TUC aimed to increase awareness of key issues among management, unions and workers.


• A CBI party of industrialists held talks with counterparts in Moscow ahead of a visit to Russia by the president and director-general.


1968 • The Employment Policy Committee was established to advise, initiate research and steer the work of other CBI committees in employment matters.


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• Full CBI membership was extended to “all the main sectors of the business community”.


1969 • The CBI published Britain in Europe – A Second Industrial Approach, a consultation document advising on issues vital to Britain’s membership of the European Economic Community.


• Singapore President Lee Kuan Yew met with the CBI as part of an official visit to the UK.


1970 • Fuel supplies became a growing concern for businesses as industrial discontent led to a number of “work-to-rule” actions.


• The government acted on two key CBI recommendations: dropping restrictions on coal imports and stopping conversion of power stations to oil.


1971 • The CBI launched its price restraint campaign. Nine out of 10 of the CBI’s largest 200 members signed an undertaking to avoid price increases where possible, or limit them to 5 per cent if unavoidable.


• A survey of CBI members by the Europe Steering Committee showed a strong majority in favour of EEC membership. The CBI’s Brussels office was opened, giving direct access to the policy machine of the EEC.


1972 • Inflation hit 27 per cent as a series of major pay disputes shattered the government’s incomes policy.


• Tripartite talks between the government, the TUC and the CBI helped to increase the public’s understanding of the dangers of inflation and paved the way for the pay and prices standstill.


1973 • A CBI committee chaired by former Conservative minister Viscount Watkinson published a report, The Responsibilities of the British Public Company, which set the scene for the debate on corporate governance and responsibility.


• Following the report of the Commission of Inquiry into Industrial and Commercial Representation, the CBI strengthened the power of its regional councils to set national policy.


1974 • The year saw the imposition of a three-day week, the oil crisis, a miners’ strike, two general elections and three Budgets.


• The early years of the second Wilson government led to radical policies, which the CBI had to confront – some »


Opposite: Sir Terence Beckett launches the CBI’s The Fabric of the Nation report


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