Finchley N.A.L.G.O. Jubilee

Finchley branch of NALGO—the National and Local Government Officers Association—celebrated its golden jubilee last week with a dinner at the Hendon Hall Hotel.

Guests included Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, M.P. for Finchley, and Sir Charles Westlake, who was president of the branch during the war years.

Mrs. Thatcher, replying to the toast to “Our Guests and Visitors” , listed the qualities a local government officer should have.

“You need something much more than a good brain, more than a good brain coupled with integrity” , she said. When people come to him with their problems, it was the ability to reduce those problems to their right proportions that marked the really competent local government officer.

She had known “tremendously worthy” councillors and council officials who, for all their talent, lacked this quality.

Mrs. Thatcher spoke of Finchley's local government officers. She worked them “pretty hard” , but they always managed to provide her with the information she wanted.

Congratulating them on attaining their golden jubilee, she concluded: “I salute you and thank you for the wonderful work you do” .

NALGO's general secretary, Mr. W. C. Anderson, replying to the same toast commented, “How pleasant it is in these days to attend the jubilee celebrations of a trade union” .

The toast to the branch was proposed by the Mayor of Finchley (Cr. W. G. Hart).

“In Finchley we have got a branch of which we can be very proud” . A lot had happened in the 50 years since it had been formed. He recalled he was at the 21st anniversary dinner. There had been 18 presidents of the branch, and nine of them were still alive today.

Cr. Hart spoke of the “very happy relationship” that existed between employer and staff and, looking back, he could say the Council had been well served by its officers.

Mr. Wilfred A. Stokes, president of the branch, replied and also referred to the good relationship between staff and council.

The jubilee dinner was a great occasion for him, and he thanked members for electing him for a second year so that he could be president in the branch's 50th year.

The Town Clerk (Mr. R. M. Franklin), proposing “Our guests and Visitors” , welcomed particularly Mrs. Thatcher. She had already made her mark in the House of Commons and he was sure she would go further. It was a great honour to have her with them on this occasion.