FORMER CWS CHIEF HEADS FIRST CO-ORDINATING BODY
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AMONG those who met the Minister of Transport at the private conference on Conurba tion Transport Authorities in Liverpool on Friday was 65-year-old Sir Leonart Cooke, former president and chairman of the Co-operative Wholesale Society Ltd. Si] Leonard was at the Liverpool meeting in his capacity of chairman-designate of the Nortt Western Regional Passenger Transport Co-ordinating Committee.
The Ministry is now actively seeking nominations for membership from local authorities, transport operators, trade unions and other organizations—as set out in the references to the proposed committees in Mrs. Castle's White Paper on Transport Policy (paragraphs 76, 77). The committees are keyed to the economic planning regions and will study local transport conditions and problems, probably through small expert groups.
Where a Conurbation Transport Authority is set up within an economic planning region, the new co-ordinating committees will be concerned directly only with the area outside the CTA's authority, but elsewhere they will cover a whole region.
One of the tirst appointments to membership in the North West is that of Mr. C. R. Hodgson, chairman of the North Western Traffic Commissioners.
Headquarters of the committee will be in Manchester. Currently the whole idea appears to be only in the pipeline stage but it is understood that similar bodies will be set up in all conurbation areas.
During the period 1933-1938 Sir (then Mr.) Leonard Cooke was managing secretary of the Macclesfield Co-operative Society Ltd. He became a director of CWS in 1938 and of the Co-operative Insurance Society Ltd. in 1945, a member of the Lon
don Midland Railways Board in 1955 anc of the North West Regional Economic Planning Council in 1965.
Sir Leonard was appointed CWS chair man in 1960 and was knighted in 1965. Hi retired from his CWS appointment in Ma3 last year.