1964-1970

Question 1

Harold Wilson’s strengths (1964)

Answer 1

-Witty
-Skilled with the media
-Had a ‘normal man’ portrayal, as he was Yorkshire-born and smoked a pipe in public
-Younger than most of his competitors

Question 2

Harold Wilson’s economic policy from 1964-1970

Answer 2

-Devaluation in 1967
-The National Plan in 1964
-The DEA, which was led by George Brown
-The Prices and Incomes board
-His application to the EEC was vetoed by Degaulle in 1967

Question 3

Industrial relations from 1964-1970

Answer 3

-A series of wildcat strikes in 1966 and 1967, by the Seamen and Dockers, and the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders
-Barbara Castle’s ‘In Place of Strife’ white paper in 1969, which limited the right of the unions to strike. This caused uproar within the unions and the Labour party, and 50 Labour MPs were ready to rebel. Frank Cousins resigned over it. However, the public supported the harsher outlook on the trade unions

Question 4

The end of capital punishment

Answer 4

-The Murder Act of 1965
-Ruth Ellis was the last woman to be hanged in Britain, in 1955
-Campaigned for by Sydney Silverman
-Came into force permanently in 1970

Question 5

Divorce reform

Answer 5

-1969
-Roy Jenkins, who believed the old divorce laws were “archaic”
-Couples could now divorce if they had lived apart for 2 years, and both partners agreed to a divorce, or if they had lived apart for 5 years and one partner wanted the divorce
-In 1950, less than 2/1000 marriages ended in divorce, but by the 1970’s, nearly 1/100 marriages ended in divorce
-The reform helped to forward the female independence movement

Question 6

The legalisation of abortion

Answer 6

-1967
-Before the act, between 100,000-200,000 backstreet abortions were performed each year, and each year, 35,000 women were admitted into hospital with complications as a result
-Between 1958-1960, 82 women died as a result of backstreet abortions
-Led by the liberal MP David Steel
-The number of abortions increased from 4% in 1968, to 17.65% in 1975

Question 7

Homosexual relations legislation from 1964-1970

Answer 7

-The 1967 Sexual Offences Act
-The act did not legalise homosexual relations, it simply de-criminalised them
-Campaigned for by the Labour backbencher, Leo Abse
-Both partners had to be over the age of 21, and both had to consent. It also had to be in private
-An extension of Macmillan’s Wolfenden Commission of 1957

Question 8

Educational Reform from 1964-1970

Answer 8

-By 1964, 1/10 pupils were being educated in a comprehensive school
-Tony Crossland became the minister of education in 1963
-Circular 10/65 was released in 1965, urging all local communities to adopt the comprehensive school system
-By 1970, there were 1145 comprehensive schools, catering for 1/3 pupils in secondary education
-However, some parents simply turned to direct grant schools and independent schools, showing that the comprehensive system was flawed from the start

Question 9

The expansion of higher education and the Open University from 1964-1970

Answer 9

-By 1968, there were 30 polytechnics and 56 universities
-However, middle class children still dominated the old universities
-The Open University was established in 1969
-The Open University recruited largely part-time students with a totally different background from traditional university students
-By 1980, the Open University had 70,000 students, and was awarding more degrees than Oxford and Cambridge combined

Question 10

The Special Relationship from 1964-1970

Answer 10

-Wilson was pro-American
-Britain and the USA co-operated closely during the Cold War
-Wilson refused to send troops to Vietnam in 1964, despite Lyndon B. Johnson’s plea for military aid, which had been provided by Australia already
-The British public were mostly against the Vietnam War, as were the majority of Labour MPs
-Wilson offered non-military support, such as secret information out of Hong Kong and police training in Vietnam

Question 11

Britain’s relationship with Europe from 1964-1970

Answer 11

-Wilson’s EEC application was rejected in 1967, as he refused to step away from the ‘Special Relationship’
-Many on the left of Labour were Eurosceptics, including Michael Foot and Barbara Castle, as well as the trade unions
-There were a number of europhiles within the Labour Party, including George Brown and Roy Jenkins
-Wilson’s EEC application damaged his relationship with the trade unions

Question 12

The expansion of the mass media from 1964-1970

Answer 12

-In 1955, there were 4,504,000 Britons with TV licenses. This figure had reached 13,253,000 people by 1965
-ITV had been launched in 1955
-BBC 2 launched in 1964, and was the first channel to regularly broadcast in colour
-‘The Sun’ newspaper was created in 1964

Question 13

The reduction in censorship from 1964-1970

Answer 13

-‘Hair’ was a 1968 play which featured 13 naked cast members for 30 seconds
-More daring films, such as ‘Darling’ from 1965, were released. These films included more violence and sexual topics
-BBC Radio 1 played more youthful music

Question 14

What is permissiveness?

Answer 14

A great or excessive freedom of behavior

Question 15

1964 election results

Answer 15

The Labour Party won a small majority of 4 seats over the Conservatives

Question 16

Evidence of a permissive society

Answer 16

-The growing reduction in censorship
-Growing use of drugs, including cannabis, cocaine and heroin
-Cocaine and heroin addictions rose by 10x
-The Beatles promoted the use of LSD

Question 17

Evidence against a permissive society

Answer 17

-Mary Whitehouse formed ‘The National Viewer’s and Listener’s Association’ in 1964. Her so-called “moral campaign against the BBC” was in protest to the reduction in censorship, and soon had 100,000 members
-The Catholic Church condemned the permissive society and the reduction in censorship, as well as the contraceptive pill
-The Dangerous Drugs Act of 1967
-A survey in the 1960’s revealed that young people were most likely to be virgins on marriage, or to marry their first sexual partner

Question 18

Growth in leisure activities from 1964-1970

Answer 18

-The TV accounted for 23% of all leisure activities
-People started gardening and doing DIY due to their increased free-time
-The number of holidays increased
-Britannia Airways was formed in 1964
-However, the majority of foreign holidays were taken by the middle class

Question 19

The position of women from 1964-1970

Answer 19

-Second-wave feminism spread to the UK from the USA during the 1960’s
-‘The Feminine Mystique’ was published by Betty Friedan, in 1963
-Women only made up 28% of those in higher education by 1970
-Only 5% of women made it to managerial positions
-The NHS (Family Planning) Act of 1967 made contraceptives and contraceptive advice available through the NHS
-‘The Female Eunuch’ was published by Germaine Greer in 1970
-The first National Women’s Liberation Conference was held at Oxford University in 1970
-The Matrimonial Property Act of 1970 took a woman’s occupation into divorce settlements
-The Equal Pay Act of 1970, however, this did not come into force until 1975

Question 20

Race and immigration from 1964-1970

Answer 20

-A survey in 1965 showed that 1/5 people were opposed to working with a black or Asian person, 1/2 would not live next-door to a black person, and 9/10 disapproved of mixed marriages
-The Race Relations Act of 1965 forbade discrimination in public places, however discrimination in housing and employment was excluded. This was extended to housing and employment by the 1968 Race Relations Act
-The Commonwealth Immigration Act of 1968
-Enoch Powell’s ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech in 1968. Although he was sacked by Heath, 75% of the public agreed with what he had said, and there were protests in response to his sacking
-The Race Relations Board only upheld 10% of the complaints they received
-The Notting Hill Carnival became an annual event by 1964

Question 21

Youth culture from 1964-1970

Answer 21

-There were divisions between the old and young generations
-A survey in 1969 showed that young people were more likely to listen to music in their bedrooms than to do drugs and have sex
-New sub-cultures emerged, such as the ‘hippie’ and the ‘skinhead’
-London became the fashion capital of the world for a short time during the 1960’s
-Pirate radio stations gained popularity during the 1960’s

Question 22

The anti-Vietnam war demonstrations

Answer 22

-The Battle of Grosvenor Square in 1968 saw 200 arrests
-The final demonstration of 1968 saw 30,000 protesters attend