Policy of Economies, a method of socialist management of the economy which ensures comprehensive saving and the most effective employment of living and materialised labour in all spheres of activity. A thrifty attitude to public property is conditioned by socialist property relations and is a norm of socialist management. In the production sphere the policy of economies ensures increased production with available resources, lower inputs of labour and money per unit of output; accelerated economic development and, ultimately, greater satisfaction of social needs. The implementation of the policy of economies is a major prerequisite for improving the efficiency of social production. In the non-production sphere it also helps reduce the cost of services, expand their volume and improve their quality, with minimal outlays. The policy of economies requires the most effective utilisation of manpower, material, financial, and natural resources. Under capitalism, the owners of enterprises and companies do their utmost to cut down costs necessary for normal conditions of labour and safety—often to the detriment of the workers’ health—in the quest to increase their profits. The principal saving tool under capitalism is the intensification of exploitation of man by man. Under socialism, the policy of economies presupposes everybody’s care for socialist property and the profound interest of every worker in its protection and expansion. The desire to reduce waste is a most important feature of the socialist management of the economy, and stems from the nature of relations of production and the common interests of all members of society, collectives of enterprises, and the state. Working time and material resources are saved at enterprises through a set of related production and technological, organisational, economic, and political and educational endeavours. Among the production and technological endeavours are comprehensive mechanisation of production and automation of production which ensure lower labour costs per unit of output, better design of products to reduce their weight and dimensions while improving their techno-economic characteristics, the introduction of advanced production techniques, full use of production waste, secondary material and power resources, etc. The organisational efforts are aimed at tightening labour discipline, increasing responsibility for intelligent use of resources, and improving the organisation of production and labour. The economic efforts include planning for savings, the consolidation of cost accounting, the introduction of scientifically sound standards for labour, material, fuel, and energy expenditures and utilisation of facilities, and improved system of economic indices, book-keeping and control, better material incentives to economies, and greater responsibility for overspending. Standards are a major tool in guaranteeing the policy of economies. A decision by the CPSU Central Committee and the Council of Ministers on improving the economic mechanism calls for including into new or revised standards the requirements which would ensure reduction of the weight of articles and fuel and energy consumption in the operation of plant 275 and machinery. Socialist emulation for economising and better use of all resources is given all the encouragement possible. The effective combination of all techniques and methods for ensuring the implementation of the policy of economies is obtained through the development and realisation of comprehensive targetoriented programmes which are based on functional cost analysis for detection and elimination of unreasonable costs. For the short term, the priority is development of a comprehensive target-oriented programme for fuel and metal saving. The above decision of the CPSU Central Committee and the Council of Ministers obliges planning and economic bodies to envisage measures to intensify the policy of economies and eliminate waste in their plans for the country’s economic and social development.