It was Parliament's last session before the summer recess, and the hands on the House clock were moving close to 10 p.m., the hour for the final vote on Prime Minister Harold Wilson's drastic bill to freeze wages and prices. Wilson knew that he would win. But he also knew that some two dozen left-wing Laborites were certain to abstain in protest against his tactics in steamrollering the bill through Commons.
What the Prime Minister clearly needed was a way to shift attention from the vote. He came up with a dandy. Just as the House policemen were crying "Lock...
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