"the British had no economic need to have an imported source of cheap labor"

No, we largely relied on the Irish and our own abused labouring class.

The major seaports on the west coast of England, in particular Bristol and Liverpool, owed their properity to a large extent on the slave trade. Slaves were simply a commodity to be bought and sold - listen to Show of Hands 'Bristol Slaver'. Wilberforce came from Hull, a port on the east coast that had as its backbone the whaling and fishing industries and was not a 'slaving' port. I wonder if Wilberforce had come from Bristol or LIverpool whether he would have had the success he did.