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The work of the Commission should proceed by separate stages, the successful completion of each of which will develop the necessary confidence of the world before the next stage is undertaken. The Commission shall not infringe upon the responsibilities of any Organ of the United Nations, but should present recommendations for the consideration of those Organs in the performance of their tasks under the terms of the United Nations Charter. Representation of World Federation of Trade Unions and other Non-governmental Organisations The question of the representation of non-governmental bodies on the Economic and Social Council, which was also on the agenda of the First Committee, gave rise to the most prolonged and stubborn debate of the London meetings. The matter first arose in the General Committee. At an early meeting note was taken of a letter addressed to the United Nations by the World Federation of Trade Unions (W.F.T.U.) concerning the representation of world labour in United Nations discussions. The sub-committee, including the first delegate of New Zealand (Mr Fraser) in his personal capacity as Chairman of the Third Committee and member of the General Committee, was appointed by the General Committee to receive representations of the Federation and to hear full details and explanations. The representatives of the W.F.T.U. presented three specific requests to the sub-committee. These requests, which they based on the unique character, importance, and size of the organization (with its 65,000,000 members), emphasized the assistance which the organization might be able to give the United Nations in critical times. The requests were : (a) To have permanent representation in an advisory and consultative capacity, but without vote, in the General Assembly: (b) To be brought into regular consultation, under the provisions of Article 71 of the Charter, with the Economic and Social Council: ,(c) To be granted full participation in the work of the Economic and Social Council, with the right to vote. The General Committee, to which the sub-committee reported this information, was unanimously of the opinion that there could be no question of granting to any non-governmental organization the right to vote in the various organs of the United Nations, since this would be equivalent to a modification of the Charter. It was around the second of these three requests, that which concerned relations with the Economic and Social Council, that the discussion crystallized. The New Zealand representative emphasized that the General Committee" was empowered only to make recommendations as to what the General Assembly might discuss and the order in which- matters should be discussed. He therefore took exception to a discussion of the substance of the question proceeding in the General Committee. However, the President ruled otherwise, and the discussion continued.