As Greece prepares to hold an election this weekend, the result of which may have significant repercussions for the rest of Europe, it is also the 70th anniversary of a TUC delegation to the country. The delegation left London 70 years ago today – January 22nd 1945.

The TUC had been invited by the Greek Confederation of Labour to advise on the re-establishment of free trade unions following the withdrawal of Germany from Greece in October 1944. The TUC produced a report of the delegation’s activities, as can be seen below:

A second delegation visited Greece in February 1945 in order to supervise trade union elections and the reconstitution of the Provisional Committee of the Confederation. The photo below shows Victor Feather [front centre] with the rest of the newly elected Committee in June 1945. Feather, who would later serve as General Secretary of the TUC from 1969-1973, had stayed in Greece to assist with the elections.