ABSTRACT
The constitution of the Council of Associated Stock Exchanges remained virtually unchanged until after the Second World War when a significant alteration was made in the powers of the Council which transformed it from a consultative body into a representative one. Such a change had been mooted in the thirties by the reformists on the Council in order to strengthen its power in negotiations with London, so that all agreements arrived at could be made binding upon the member Exchanges. But at the time a good sprinkling of the old liberal view persisted claiming that such a move was a direct contravention of the original purposes of the Council, that it was never intended as a coercive body but rather one aimed at obtaining harmony by consultation. 1 If such a change had been accomplished then, it would undoubtedly have improved the bargaining position of the provinces in their negotiations with London later in the decade. The experience of those meetings and the closer association with both the Treasury and the London Stock Exchange during wartime, and especially the post-war attempts at a greater uniformity of regulations, brought matters to a head. Accordingly in 1947 the Council introduced new rules whereby all member exchanges were required to adopt all decisions passed by the Consultative Committee. If a member exchange did not agree then the matter would be placed before the full Council, and if carried by a majority of three-quarters of the total voting power the new rules became binding on all member exchanges; the alternative was to leave the Council. The smaller markets overlooked their reservations about the new procedure in exchange for better representation on the Consultative Committee. The Council thus had powers to “make and to enforce decisions”, albeit, a little delayed in coming.
