The Branch Councils, modelled on the Central Council and suborc:linaeeJ to it, are somewhat more representative of the rank and file, who com, prise about half the elected membership. (The councils average 35 ~ bers, about IS% ex officio.) Apart from administering its own welf.are funds the Branch Council can sponsor resolutions to the Central Council. which, if adopted, become recommendations to management. About six to 8eYeD a year are made and from I9SS to 1964 a third were accepted, though JlOC all implemented.• It was a Branch Council that, for the first time, •ccted a major management proposal (on five-day trading). During the ~ous discussions on this issue, in the opinion of the authors of the scudy. 'the decision process itself was basically the normal one of manage.nent deciding what it wanted to achieve, and preparing the ground in such a way that orders issued were likely to be obeyed'.2 The policy rejection was accepted by the Chairman of the Partnership-though it should be noted that no vital uading issues were involved-but whether this incident indicates that in future partners will make more use of their part!cipatory powers remains to be seen.