Topic 4: Politics (1979-87)

Question 1

5

Describe the main aims of Thatcherism

Answer 1

• Roll back the state through privatisation
• Reduce inflation to virtually nothing to encourage saving and economic confidence
• Gradually reduce state benefits
• Deregulation to encourage competition
• Monetarism

Question 2

4

Describe the New Right ideological influences on Thatcher

Answer 2

• Chicago School of Economics and Milton Friedman
• 1974, anti-Heath Keith Joseph and Thatcher founded CPS to promote free-markets following election loss
• 1977, ASI founded to promote neo-liberal ideas
• Became central policy engines of Thatcher government

CPS - centre for policy studies
ASI - Adam Smith Institute

Question 3

5

Describe Thatcher’s first cabinet

Answer 3

• Not yet secure in her position to rely on loyalists - limited agenda until 1981
• 3/4 of cabinet could be associated with mainstream keynesianism/Macmillan ideals
• Included ‘wets’ and ‘dries’
• ‘monetarists and dries prevalent in Treasury
• ON Willie Whitelaw (HS/DPM) served as link

Question 4

3

List ‘wets’ in Thatcher’s first cabinet

Answer 4

• Lord Carrington - FS
• Michael Heseltine - Env Sec
• James Prior - Employment

Question 5

4

List ‘dries’ in Thatcher’s first cabinet

Answer 5

• Sir Geoffrey Howe - CX
• Keith Joseph - Trade and Industry
• David Howell - Energy Sec
• Monetarist John Biffen as Chief Sec of Treasury - prevents opposition to monetarist econ plans

Question 6

4

Describe relations with Northern Ireland in Thatcher’s first term

Answer 6

• Thatcher staunchly unionist
• Relations with Irish Fianna Fail premier, Charles Haughney, were tense
• Growing sectarian murders hardened British stance
• Hunger Strikes

Question 7

3

Describe sectarian murders in the Troubles in 1979

Answer 7

• 1979, aide Airey Neave killed by IRA car bomb in Westminster
• Warrenpoint Ambush 1979 - IRA claimed responsibility for bomb which killed 18 British parachute regiment members in Warrenpoint
• 1979 (same day as Warrenpoint), Lord Mountbatten killed on yacht in County Sligo, Ireland

Lord Mountbatten - Cousin of Queen

Question 8

5

Describe Maze Hunger Strikes 1980 and 1981

Answer 8

• 1980, Republican inmates went on strike for political status at Maze prison, Belfast
• Thatcher under pressure to retain hardline stance, but conceded significant concessions to prevent ‘martyr effect’
• e.g. offered concession deal that would have met most of prisoner demands
• May-August 1981, 10 IRA/INLA prisoners starved themselves to death after protesting British govt’s refusal to treat them as political prisoners rather than criminals
• Bobby Sands became first to die in May

Question 9

5

Describe Bobby Sands

Answer 9

• Commanding officer of IRA at Maze
• Had been elected an MP during imprisonment and hunger strike with over 30k votes
• over 100k attended funeral
• Thatcher’s unyielding approach to terrorists won her praise in Britain
• Yet hardened SF and nationalist support in NI

Question 10

6

Describe reasons for conservative victory in 1983

Answer 10

• Falklands War victory
• ‘Right to buy’
• Economic success (e.g. inflation falling from 22% to 5%)
• Trade Union reform
• Campaign
• Labour failures

Question 11

3

Describe the electoral impact of the Falklands War

Answer 11

• Thatcher went from being most unpopular PM since polls began to spiking in popularity
• Labour held 6 point lead in March despite leftist tilt
• By May Conservatives held 12.5% lead over Alliance (with Labour in 3rd place)

Question 12

5

Describe the results of the 1983 election (for the conservatives)

Answer 12

• Expected result - due to Falklands
• 144-seat Conservative majority
• However won only 42.4% of popular vote, lower than any other conservative victory from 1945-79
• Performed poorly in Northern England and Scotland
• Relied on Southern England + Greater London where more seats were now located following expansion from 635 to 650 MPs

Question 13

3

Describe the impact of the SDP in the 1983 election

Answer 13

• June 1981, formed ‘Alliance’ with liberals to prevent split of centre vote
• November 1981 poll showed that 45% of electorate supported Alliance (though in context in unpopular Thatcher and Labour in dissaray)
• Split vote with Labour to certain extent

Question 14

5

Describe evidence that shows the impact of the SDP in the 1983 election

Answer 14

• Won 25.4% of popular vote, only 2.2% behind Labour
• FPTP system led to Alliance coming 2nd in 209 constituencies
• Conservatives gained 58 seats despite 1.5% decrease in popular vote
• Though Alliance only achieved 23 MPs, with only 6 beng SDP
• Comparatively, Alliance made little gain compared to past results by Liberals in Conservative territory

Question 15

3

Describe the 1983 election results for Labour

Answer 15

• Labour won 27.6% of pop votes (lowest since 1918)
• Labour fell by 60 seats to 209
• less than 40% trade unionists and less than half of unemployed voted for Labour

Question 16

4

Describe the conservative campaign in 1983

Answer 16

• Thatcher attacked pacifict unilateralists and embodied strong leadership (this stance was facilitated by Falklands victory)
• Conservatives held overwhelming backing of popular press
• Manifesto promised further legislation against trade unions, abolition of metropolitan councils and continued privatisation
• Conservative campaign held 320 agents compared to Labour’s 63

Question 17

7

Describe the issues with the Labour campaign in 1983

Answer 17

• Riven by factionism
• SDP split centre-left vote
• Manifesto described as ‘longest suicide note’ in history
• Foot pillaged by right-wing press
• Missed opportunities to campaign via TV
• Radical defence policy lost traditional supporters - anti-NATO/Europe, pro-UDI
• Incorporated irish nationalist, feminist and environmental movements

Question 18

6

Describe the ‘longest suicide note in history’ 1983

Answer 18

• 39-page manifesto
• UDI
• Higher personal taxation
• Withdrawal from EEC
• renationalisation of privatised companies e.g. British Aerospace
• abolition of HoL

Question 19

6

Describe Thatcher’s cabinet reshuffle in her second term

Answer 19

• DPM Whitelaw handed first hereditary peerage since 1964 (though of little value as he had no male heir)
• Howe (dry) replaced Francis Pym (wet) at FS for being too concillatory during the Falklands conflict
• Lawson put as CX
• Leon Brittan (dry) became HS
• Oct 1983, Cecil Parkison replaced as Trade and Industry Sec by right-winger Tebbitt after sex scandal
• Thatcher had wanted to move Tebbitt to HS but Whitelaw vetoed the move

Question 20

5

Describe the problems with local government 1979-87

Answer 20

• Local authorities like GLC were spenders on huge scale
• Local unions such as NAGLO had expanded significantly amassing 700k members by the late 1970s
• Major authorities were led by Far Left figures
• Ken Livingstone (GLC), Derek Hatton (Liverpool Council)
• Liverpool council controlled by far-left Militant, a symbol of ideological extremism and financial extravagance

NAGLO - National and Local Government Officers’ Association

Question 21

3

Describe Thatcher’s response to Local Government issues (1979-87)

Answer 21

• 1984, introduced ‘rate-capping’ which imposed upper-limit on the tax rate per household local authorities could demand
• 1985, local councils attempted to defy these provisions by applying surcharges to compensate for expenditure cuts
• Local Government Act 1986

Question 22

4

Describe the Local Government Act 1986

Answer 22

• Abolished large metropolitan councils and curbed many powers of local councils
• Effectively disbanded GLC and Merseyside authority
• Signficant blow to local democracy and participation
• Marked transition to centralisation of power

Question 23

3

Describe economic issues in Northern Ireland (1983-87)

Answer 23

• Unemployment at 21%, highest in the UK
• stood at 30-40% in Catholic WC areas of Belfast and Bogside, Derry
• indsutries such as Shorts Aircraft faced financial difficulties

Question 24

5

Describe the Brighton hotel bombing 1984

Answer 24

• October 1984 Conservative Party Conference
• Grand Hotel, Brighton
• Assassination attempt on Thatcher and entire cabinet
• IRA bomb killed 5 including deputy Chief Whip Anthony Berry
• Thatcher defiant and delivered her planned speech the next morning

Question 25

# 4 Describe the terms of the Anglo-Irish (Hillsborough) Agreement 1985

Answer 25

* Ulster would remain in UK * Ministers from both UK and ROI would regularly meet for reviews * Irish Government had advisory role in political, security, legal matters * Thus involved ROI in internal affairs to placate nationalists

Question 26

# 3 Describe the impact of Anglo-Irish Agreement 1985

Answer 26

* 15 UUP MPs resigned in outrage * Greater security gains did not follow * Thatcher focussed on reducing terrorist threat and agreement did not evolve to peace

Question 27

# 2 Give an example of disagreement on legal/human rights

Answer 27

* Birmingham Six - 6 men falsely imprisoned for life following 1974 Birmingham pub bombings * Convictions quashed in 1991

Question 28

# 3 In the 1980s, what percentage of the RUC were Catholic

Answer 28

* approx 3% * Despite Catholics making up 38% of population of NI by 1981 * Seen as Ascendency force

Question 29

# 5 Describe Thatcher policy on the BBC (1983-87)

Answer 29

* Increasingly challenged by government * Conflict arose over funding * Accusations over anti-Government reporting, especailly on the Libya bombing raids of 1986 * Govt imposed ban on BBC interviewing SF members * Govt politcally appointed Thatcherite ‘Duke’ Hussey as new BBC chairman

Question 30

# 3 Describe Thatcher policy on the GCHQ

Answer 30

* Concern for security led govt to ban trade union membership at GCHQ security base in Cheltenham - 1984 * equated union membership with disloyalty ## Footnote GCHQ - Government Communications HQ

Question 31

# 4 Describe Tory rebellions (1983-87)

Answer 31

* Heath took 'wet' position on several issues * Heath led opposition to the dismantling of GLC, later opposing poll tax and europe policy * Shops Bill 1986 to permit Sunday Trading derailed by 72 Con rebels * Heseltine resigned over the Westland Affair

Question 32

# 4 Describe the context of the Westland Affair 1985-86

Answer 32

* Westland Helicopters, Britain’s last helicopter manufacturer, subject to rescue bid * Thatcher and Industry Sec, Leon Brittan, favoured a merger with Sikorsky, an American firm * Heseltine favoured European consortium * Thatcher sided with Brittan due to support for US ties and growing euroscepticism

Question 33

# 3 Describe the events of the Westland Affair 1985-86

Answer 33

* Jan 1986, Heseltine resigned as Defence Sec after dispute about whether proper debate on the issue was being allowed in cabinet * Brittan would too resign after leaking a confidential letter critical of Heseltine, though it appeared that Thatcher had some knowledge of leak * Temporarily threatened Thatcher's position

Question 34

# 5 Describe the Spycatcher scandal 1986

Answer 34

* 1986, govt tried to suppress publication of book, *Spycatcher*, by ex-MI5 member, Peter Wright * Book included allegations that MI5 had tried to destabilise Wilson’s govt * Cabinet Sec, Robert Armstrong sent to Australia to prevent publication * Armstrong made reference to civil servants being ‘economical with the truth’ to discredit claims * Book published though not allowed to be sold in UK, though could be easily purchased in airports

Question 35

# 4 Describe the results of the 1987 election

Answer 35

* Predictable conservative majority of 102 * Con: 376 (-21) * Lab: 229 (+20) * Alliance: 22 (-1)

Question 36

# 3 Describe the rise of nationalist party support in the 1987 election

Answer 36

* PC rose from 2 to 3 seats * SNP rose in support * moderate SDLP gained seats

Question 37

# 3 Describe the regional electoral trends in the 1987 election

Answer 37

* Conservatives increasingly became party of SE * lost 11/21 Scottish seats * Tories had no rep in several Northern cities inc Glasgow, Newcastle, Manchester

Question 38

# 3 Describe the 1987 election results for Labour

Answer 38

* Re-established itself as dominant opposition party * proportion of trade union members voting lab had slightly increased * however trade union members' share of electorate had declined

Question 39

# 2 Describe the role of the Alliance in the 1987 election

Answer 39

* Main challenger in 3/5th Conservative seats * Alliance share of vote fell by 3% and lost 1 seats

Question 40

# 4 Describe the reasons for Conservative victory in the 1987 election

Answer 40

* Affluence of Lawson's policies * Industrial policy (miner's strike and trade union policy) * Failures of Labour * Wider political factors

Question 41

# 6 Describe the success of Conservative policies by 1987

Answer 41

* 'Economic miracle' (consumer-driven boom) in prosoperous regions that had backed Conservatives in 1983, consolidating support * All of major innovations (sale of council houses, privatisation, tax reform, trade union reform) had been achieved and met with popular acclaim * Real wages higher than inflation in many areas * Privatisation provided windfall profits * 1987 giveaway budget * Conservatives held image of competence and enterprise

Question 42

# 5 Describe Labour strengths by 1987

Answer 42

* Lead more effective campaign than in 1983 * Enlisted talents of Hugh Hudson, director of 1981's *Chariots of Fire* to direct party broadcast *Kinnock - the Movie* * More radical policies of 1983 dropped * Campaign management team, headed by Bryan Gould, gave prominence to Kinnock and MEP wife Glenys, in broadcasts

Question 43

# 4 Which policies of 1983 Labour had been dropped by 1987?

Answer 43

* abolition of HoL * withdrawal from EEC * closure of American nuclear bases * yet UDI remained

Question 44

# 5 Describe Labour weaknesses by 1987?

Answer 44

* Core of policies remained (e.g. UDI) leaving open scathing criticism by right-wing press * Sun ran headline ‘Why I’m backing Kinnock, by Stalin’ * Still focussed on Northern Industrial base and largely ignored growing home-owning population in the South * Held only 2 seats in SE * Political loyalty to Labour had eroded due to Thatcherism (much like consumerism had eroded brand loyalty in the 1980s)

Question 45

# 3 Describe wider political factors that contributed to conservative election victory in 1987

Answer 45

* Thatcher survived Westland Affair unscathed * Cabinet realignment to 'dries' had better delivered policies * Alliance ethusiasm dissipated as vote share fell by 3% as Labour's leftist addiction waned