3.16 The 1979 Election

Question 1

Who became leader of the Conservatives in 1975?

Answer 1

Thatcher

Question 2

What was the slogan some Conservatives used when voting against Heath?

Answer 2

‘Anyone but Ted’

Question 3

How did nationalist parties fare in the election?

Answer 3

They suffered severely

Question 4

How did the SNP do in the 1979 election?

Answer 4

Lost 9 of their 11 seats

Question 5

How did the Welsh nationalists do in the 1979 election?

Answer 5

Lost 1 of their 3 seats

Question 6

In southern England, how high could the swing from Labour to Conservative have been?

Answer 6

Up to 7%

Question 7

In Scotland, how far was the swing from Labour to Conservative?

Answer 7

Less than 1% with a national average of 5.2%

Question 8

How many seats did the Conservative Party gain in the 1979 election?

Answer 8

339 (43.9%)

Question 9

How many seats did the Labour Party gain in the 1979 election?

Answer 9

269 (36.9%)

Question 10

How many seats did the Liberals gain in the 1979 election?

Answer 10

11

Question 11

What style of leadership did Thatcher have?

Answer 11

Confrontational and dictatorial

Question 12

Why did lots of women vote for Thatcher?

Answer 12

In the hope that a woman prime minister ‘might make a difference’

Question 13

Which firm did Thatcher use to help her public image?

Answer 13

Saatchi and Saatchi

Question 14

What was Willie Whitelaw’s main concern?

Answer 14

Party unity

Question 15

What were the two main factions against Thatcher?

Answer 15

Upper-class traditionalists (grandees)

One Nation Conservatives (like Heath and Heseltine)

Question 16

What were two opposing groups named in the Conservative Party?

Answer 16

Dries and the wets

Question 17

Who were the ‘dries’?

Answer 17

‘hard nosed’ figures like Thatcher who thought uncompromising measures were necessary for Britain to recover its economic position and moral fibre

Question 18

Who were the ‘wets’?

Answer 18

Preferred Keynesian style policies of Macmillan and Heath.
Not prepared to instigate tough measures if it meant unemployment or social disadvantage

Question 19

Who influenced Thatcher’s policies?

Answer 19

Sir Keith Joseph and Enoch Powell

Question 20

What did Thatcher’s policies promote?

Answer 20

Promoted an end to restrictive incomes policies

Trade union reform

Control of inflation

Tax cuts

Firm handling of immigration

Question 21

What did both side’s propaganda emphasise?

Answer 21

The other side’s failings (e.g. Three Day Week vs Unemployment figures)

Question 22

What had the Labour Party suffered with?

Answer 22

Falling membership and lack of organisation

Question 23

How many election agents did the Conservatives have?

Answer 23

300

Question 24

How many election agents did Labour have?

Answer 24

70

Question 25

What event was Thatcher able to exploit?

Answer 25

Winter of Discontent

Question 26

What images were the Conservatives able to use in their campaign?

Answer 26

Images of empty graves, rotting rubbish, and rowdy picket lines

Question 27

What was one of the main platforms of the Conservative manifesto?

Answer 27

Trade union reforms

Question 28

What did the Labour Party emphasise in their election campaign?

Answer 28

More help for housing, higher pensions, an improved health service, and reintroduction of free prescriptions

Question 29

What is Labour’s National Executive?

Answer 29

It's made up of representatives from each section of the party e.g. the cabinet, MPs, councillors, trade unions etc.

Question 30

Was the Labour Party manifesto as left wing as the Labour’s National Executive would have liked?

Answer 30

No

Question 31

What policies had the Liberals put forward?

Answer 31

Proportional representation, support for the EEC and a transfer from direct to indirect taxation

Question 32

Who likely benefitted because of the Liberals weaker campaign?

Answer 32

The Conservatives

Question 33

Who saw their incomes diminishing in real terms?

Answer 33

Professionals and the self-employed

Question 34

Who did professionals and the self-employed blame for their incomes diminishing in real terms?

Answer 34

Labour

Question 35

Why were Labour blamed for some people's wages being diminished in real terms?

Answer 35

The party had built comprehensive schools and polytechnics, raised higher tax levels, and entered into a dialogue with trade unions. Labour had let the ‘wrong kind of people’ into authority

Question 36

Who did the middle classes primarily vote for?

Answer 36

Conservatives

Question 37

The reason for the Conservative victory was seen as the country having an appetite for change. When else had Britain seen this?

Answer 37

1906, 1945, and 1951