18. Economic Issues BRT Flashcards
Mobilisation of resources during wartime: what areas did the comprehensive gov controls that were introduced at start of war cover
Food supplies, transport and the labour force
Extension of gov control: what did the gov pass in 1939 as soon as war broke out
Energy powers act 1939
Extension of gov control: what was gov granted authority to do until emergency powers act
Make regulations covering any aspect of life necessary to secure defence of the realm
Extension of gov control: which ministries were set up
- ministry of aircraft production
- ministry of labour
- ministry of production
Extension of gov control: how did cabinet committees coordinate work of separate ministries
Ministry of production coordinated on supply side and treasury being responsible for finance
Extension of gov control: how gov control extended over industry directily
Royal ordnance factories employed 300,000 workers
Extension of gov control: why were non essential industries run down
So their machinery and labour could be diverted to war Work
Extension of gov control: why were new production methods devised
Raise output and save labour
Extension of gov control: why did gov encourage greater use of science
Improving efficiency of economy and for developing new techniques/warfare
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: why was Bevin the ideal choice as minister of labour
He had a long career in TU affairs before the war
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: why did Bevin have to do with the millions unemployed in 1940
Get them back to work and mobilise the workforce efficiently
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: what kind of conscription did Bevin introduce
Industrial conscription for men and later women too
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: who were conscripted to Work in coal mines from late 1943
Young men/bevins boys conscripted to work in coal mines
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: which industries were women encouraged to work in
Munitions, engineering and shipbuilding
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: which problem did the demands of war Work solved
Unemployment
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: what did the total workforce raise by
2 million
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: what did Bevin use to force factories to improve conditions
Essential work orders
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: how were factory conditions improved
Works canteens, washrooms and medical centres
Wages improved, TU bargaining continued
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: how did Bevin maintain workers morale
Constantly toured factories and delivered 300 speeches, encouraged lunchtime entertainment
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: what was broadcast on the bbc from 1941
Workers playtime
Bevin and the organisation of war Work: what effect did bevins contribution to the war effort have
Did a lot to change perceptions and to convince people that labour politicians could be trusted with power
Control of food supplies: why did clothes food and fuel have to be rationed
Imports of food had to be reduced following loss of shipping due to German u boat attacks
Control of food supplies: who was in charge of devising a fair rationing policy and advising public on how to make the best of it
Ministry of Food under Lord Woolton
Control of food supplies: how was agriculture changed to increase productivity
Millions of acres of land ploughed up, production shifted from meat to cereals and greater use of tractors and fertilisers
Control of food supplies: which campaign led to a huge rise in home grown veg
Dig for Victory
The post war economic adjustment: rationing: what was austerity
Living standards held down so that production could go into exports to earn mucb needed dollars
The post war economic adjustment: rationing: why did labour maintain and even intensify wartime rationing
To limit imports and divert resources into exports
The post war economic adjustment: rationing: why were 1948 rations below wartime average
Financial and economic crisis of 1947
The post war economic adjustment: rationing; which two foods were rationed between 1946-48 which hadn’t been in the war
Bread and potatoes
The post war economic adjustment: rationing: when did it end completely
Not until 1954
The post war economic adjustment: rebuilding exports: what was the export drive the twin of
Austerity
The post war economic adjustment: rebuilding exports: what could exports especially to America earn
The dollars needed to buy essential imports of food and raw materials
The post war economic adjustment: rebuilding exports: why did imports have to be reduced
To avoid paying for goods in dollars
The post war economic adjustment: peacetime industrial production: why did industries need to switch quickly from wartime to peacetime production
If export drive was to be met
The post war economic adjustment: peacetime industrial production: why were gov controls maintained
In order to allocate materials and give priority for exports
The post war economic adjustment: peacetime industrial production: why did labour have a regional policy directing and encouraging new factories to open in old depressed areas
Economy needed to work at full capacity
The post war economic adjustment: peacetime industrial production: what were wartime controls maintain on
Prices and wages
The post war economic adjustment: economic planning and employment: why did labour believe in state planning
To support the export drive and maintain full employment
The post war economic adjustment: economic planning and employment: how did labour plan to support export drive and maintain full employment in long term
Through nationalisation
The post war economic adjustment: economic planning and employment: how did labour plan to support export drive and maintain full employment in short term
Gov used rationing system to control use of which materials and labour could be put with priority for exports
The post war economic adjustment: economic planning and employment: how did the gov stimulate economy, avoid inflation and unemployment
Taxation, interest rates and the budget
The post war economic adjustment: economic planning and employment: how was agriculture helped
By subsidies and guaranteed prices
The post war economic adjustment: building a new international economic system: who did labour cooperate with to build a new world economic order
The United States
The post war economic adjustment: building a new international economic system: what was the new world economic order based on
The world bank and the International Monetary Fund
The post war economic adjustment: building a new international economic system: how did the building of a new world order begin
With a meeting of economic experts to agree on a general agreement on tariffs and trade
The post war economic adjustment: building a new international economic system: what did the new world economic order aim to do
Regulate world trade in order to avoid another deep deperession like that of 1930s
labours post war balance of payments: how much debt did Britain have
£4198 million
labours post war balance of payments: what was the balance of payments crisis from 1945-1946
Britain spent £750 million more abroad that it received
labours post war balance of payments: what was the drop in the export of manufactured goods
60%
labours post war balance of payments: what was the reduction in invisible exports between 1938-1946
1938: £248 million
1946: £120 million
labours post war balance of payments: in which areas were costs rapidly increasing
in maintaining the military overseas
labours post war balance of payments: what did Keynes do to cope with the crisis
negotiated loans from the USA and Canada totalling more than $5000 million
labours post war balance of payments: what conditions did the loans come with
- Britain had to end its policy of giving preference to trade with countries in the British empire
- Britain had to accept policies of multilateral trade and join the new organisation of general agreement on tariffs and trade
- Britain had to make the pound fully convertible to dollars within a year
labours post war balance of payments: what was the dollar gap
the us dollar was so strong that Britain began to suffer from it
goods had to be paid for in dollars, making loans less effective and harder to repay
labours post war balance of payments: what was the loan running out years before it was meant to partly down to
the bad winter of 1946-47
labours post war balance of payments: who was the chancellor at this point
Hugh Dalton
labours post war balance of payments: what did Hugh Dalton have to allow holders of sterling to do
convert these into dollars
labours post war balance of payments: why did convertibility have to be suspended within a month
there weren’t enough dollars in the Bank of England
labours post war balance of payments: what effect did the crisis have
shook confidence in Attlee’s cabinet and brought home realisation that Britain couldn’t continue spending so much on overseas commitments
labours post war balance of payments: which controls were reintroduced in the meantime
exchange controls
recovery: what was a significant reason for the economy starting to recover by 1948
American Aid
recovery: what had the usa started to fear from 1947 about poverty in Europe
that it would lead to spread of communism
recovery: under which plan did the US give 13 billion dollars in economic aid to Europe
the marshall plan
recovery: what did exports increase by between 1946 and 1950
80%
recovery: how much higher was the volume of exports by 1950, than 1937
50%
recovery: how was the motor vehicle industry especially successful
almost doubled pre-war peak of production
recovery: what was success of motor vehicle industry helped by
lack of competition fro Germany and Japan
more damaged by war than britain
recovery: what setback was there in 1949
recession in America reduced demand for British exports and produced another balance of payments crisis
recovery: what did Stafford cripps do in response to 1949 balance of payments crisis
devalued pound sterling against US dollar
£1 worth $2.8 instead of $4.03
recovery: what was the disadvantage of devaluing pound
it was a blow to british prestige
recovery: advantage of devaluing pound
made british exports to America cheaper and greatly reduced trade deficit between imports and exports
recovery: by when was the balance of payments in surplus
1950
recovery: what created another balance of payments crisis
Korean war
recovery: Attlee gov successes in industry
kept interest rates, inflation and wage rates low
made it easier for firms to invest, expand and export
recovery: what improvements were seen in agriculture
productivity improved, able to produce more home grown foods- keeping imports lower and helping balance of payments
recovery: what proportion of new factories built 1945-51 were sited in formerly depressed areas
50%
recovery: which slogan was used to make staple and new industries push into full production
‘export or die’
recovery: how was labour able to keep down wages and costs
through arrangements with the trade unions
recovery: why was the number of gov controls reduced between 1949-50
it was beginning to stifle enterprise
nationalisation: what did the post war labour gov succeed in taking into public ownership between 1946 and 1951
20% of economic enterprises and employing 10% of workforce
nationalisation: which areas of industry did the state mostly own/control
fuel and power production, transport, the steel industry and the bank of england
nationalisation: which factors made the nationalisation of industry possible in a way that could never have been possible before
the state had already virtually nationalised key parts of British industry between 1939-45
nationalisation: what was there now widespread belief in
the advantages of state planning, ownership and control. even amongst business people and middle classes
nationalisation: what did nationalisation have to be pushed through parliament in face of strong opposition from
the Conservatives
impact of nationalisation: the supply of what was expanded
electricity and gas
impact of nationalisation: growth in
civil aviation, cable and wireless communication
impact of nationalisation: electrification extended to
more and more remote parts of the country
impact of nationalisation: coal output increased significantly between
1946-1951
impact of nationalisation: state control ensured what met minimum standards
safety and working conditions
impact of nationalisation: why did nationalisation cost a lot of money
private owners had to be compensated which cost £2700 million
impact of nationalisation: how did it burden taxpayers
seriously run down, unprofitable industries which would have to be subsidised indefinitely eg coal and railways
impact of nationalisation: why did some nationalised industries not benefit from state control
administrative system adopted by labour didn’t directly involve workers/consumers in the decision making and running of the great industries
impact of nationalisation: examples of industries in competition with each other
gas and electricity
impact of nationalisation: what was there improvement in for workers in nationalised industries
pay and conditions
how radical was nationalisation: how was nationalisation viewed by right wing
dangerous policy introducing socialism into Britain
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: most nationalised industries survived in state ownership until 1980s
for
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: nationalisation, along with welfare state moved Britain towards becoming a collectivist society
for
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: british economy ceased to become entirely capitalist and instead became a mixed economy
for `
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: nationalisation was also a step towards a more socialist Britain in which industry would run for social need not private gain
for
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: most of industries nationalised after 1945 had a long history of state involvement and control
against
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: form of nationalisation chosen was based on the organisation used for public corporations that had been created by the national gov in the 1930s
against
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: socialist demands for workers control were ignored. nationalised industries run by managers and civil servant
against
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: most of industries nationalised tended to be unprofitable ones
against
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: private owners compensated and their assets not confiscated
against
how radical was nationalisation: for or against: most industry remained in private hands
against
how radical was nationalisation: evidence for combination of limited central planning and Keynesian economic being a success
became basis of economic policy until late 1970s
