Brezhnev and Khrushchev industrial refroms Flashcards
1
Q
What was Khrushchevs vision?
A
- Modernise Soviet Industry = investing in light industry to produce more consumer goods
- Wanted Soviet Union to reach communism by 1980
- Believed housing, transport and good would all be available freely
2
Q
What were the Industrial problems faced by the Soviet Union]
3 examples
A
- Military spending = Arms Race, USSR committed to high lvls of military spending, limited funds elsewhere
- Command Economy = Stalins Command Economy good at producing large quantities of basic goods (steel concrete) but not complex goods like cars and radios
- Inefficiency = Command Economy highly inefficient = Wasted resources
3
Q
What were the aims of the 7 year plan?
A
Launched January 1959:
- Increase production of consumer goods
- Increase production of chemical fertilisers to support Khrushchevs agricultural policies
4
Q
What successess came out of Khrushchevs 7 year plan?
How short was it from target
A
- Plan boosted production of consumer goods and chemical fertilisers
- Production of consumer goods 5% below target
- Production of chemicals 20% below target
Ownership of cars, radios and television sets increased
5
Q
How many cars per 1000 did USSR have against UK?
A
USSR 5 cars per 1000
UK 200 cars per 1000
6
Q
What were the reasons for failure?
2 reasons
A
- Khrushchev introduced contradictory reforms, 1957 decentralised economic planning
- Changed targets of the plan in 1962 setting more ambitious goals
7
Q
Why was there Economic decline?
A
- Refusal to change = After 1964 major economic reforms stopped = Long term problems such as inefficiency and low productivity never addressed
- Brezhnev increased military investment
8
Q
What did Brezhnev do to achieve a better Soviet Economy?
A
- Subsiding prices = Gov kept consumer goods prices low = did lead to shortages as demand higher than supply
- Second Economy = Tolerated growth of black market, allowed Soviet citizens to buy consumer goods illegally
