1964-70 key events, policies and acts Flashcards
why did Labour win the 1964 election
5 reasons
- Wilson cleverly played on the contrast between himself as the ‘plain, straight speaking Yorkshire man’ and Home as the ‘huntin’, shootin’, fishin’ aristocrat’
- Wilson tapped into the mood of the day with his famous quote about Britain needing to respond to the ‘white heat of teh technological revoltion’ - seen as modern and fit the mood of sixties Britain
- weariness and lack of spirit undermined the Conservative’s government after 13 years in government
- series of scandals had tainted the Conservative party
- Conservative’s poor economic policy
the National Plan 1964
the newly created department of economic affairs under George Brown established the plan: a programme for modernisation that aimed to increase industrial production and exports by encouragin cooperation between government, employers and trade unions
problems with the national plan
3 problems
- few of the expansive targets were ever met
- by 1967, the plan had been quietely abandoned
- it was reminiscent of Stalin’s five year plans - not ideal in the cold war where Britain didn’t want to be associated with communist Russia.
the one success of the national plan
the electorate was impressed by the government’s modernising attitude and this lead to an increase in Labour’s majority in the snap 1966 election
why did Britain struggle economically in this time period
the country was transitioning from an industrial to a post-industrial one. national and local governments had only a marginal influence over shaping this transition and it was more a case of responding to developments rather than directing them.
what did Wilson believe was the major threat to economic progress
inflation and Britain’s balance of payments deficit
what did Wilson believe was necessary to bring down inflation and the balance of payments deficit
controlling wage and salary increases and cutting government spending
what board was set up with the power to regulate settlements
the Price and Incomes Board
problems with the Price and Incomes Board
- alienated the left of the party and trade unions who though a labour government would bring benefits and not lectures
- the leader of the Transport and General Workers’ Union (TGWU), Frank Cousins resigned as minister of technology, a position he had held since 1964
what strengthened Wilson to bring the unions into line
rejection over Europe
‘in place of strife’
a white paper that set proposals aimed at preventing future strikes with the central proposal being the introduction of a series of legal restrictions on the right to strike and requiring a union majority for a legal strike. employers also had to keep to agreements and consult the unions where major decisions were being made.
consequences of ‘in place of strife’
- when it was put before cabinet by Barbara Castle (minister of labour), it created immediate and deep divisions
- opposition from the left of the party as they felt it undermined the principles the party was built on - protecting the unions
- treasurer James Callaghan was the one to end the possibility of it being implemented when he stressed the dangers of alienating the unions to party and government, as they provided the bulk of their party funding.
what convinced Wilson he had a mandate to put forwards his restrictive trade union legislation
the 1966 election success
devaluation in 1967
after Wilson hadn’t been able to reduce the trade deficit. (he blamed the 7 weeks seamen strike and other trade union problems for blowing them off course). he finally took the step to reduce the value of the pound despite being determined to do so when he came to power three years earlier
why was devaluation seen as such a disaster
if introduced earlier and in a less theatrical way, it would’ve been less dramatised
however the way it was implemented made it appear to be a major political and economic failure by the government
consequences of devaluation
- Callaghan stepped down as chancellor of the exchequer over it
- the trade unions were angered over Wilson’s attempt to lay most of the blame for the government’s financial plights on the strikers
what prompted Wilson to make a second application to the EEC
economic factors - Wilson feared that Britain would be left behind financially and economically if it did not join.
on what backdrop did preliminary discussions with the EEC take place
against the background of the sterling crisis which led to the devaluation of the pound
who backed the application to join the EEC and who didn’t
fully backed by the Conservatives and Liberals
opposed by 36 Labour MP’s
what was the result of their application
it was vetoed by De Gaulle on the same grounds as in 1963, that Britain would be an obstructive member of the EEC. the other five members on this ocassion were openly annoyed with France but it was of little consolidation to the humiliated Wilson - same as Macmillan’s European fate.
what was the Enoch Powell problem
A prominent figure in Conservative opposition who was an ardent nationalist and in his 1968 ‘river of blood’ speech he regarded unlimited immigration as a massive threat to Britain.
the Abortion Act 1967
compliemented the freedom gained from reliable contraceptives. a private members bill presented by Liberal MP David Steel and legalised abortion in cases where the mother or child’s lives were at risk or of low quality
the Lady Chatterly Lover’s Case 1960
the 1928 D H Lawrence book was published by Penguin publishers in 1960 after the 1959 Obscene Publications Act legally allowed it to be published. when it was put to trial over claims of obscenity and won, this marked the start of the permissive age in Literature and lead to writers using less censored language and ideas.
Theatres Act 1968
removed the outdated requirement for plays to be submitted to the Lord Chamberlin and approved before they could be performed - removed censorship
the Sexual Offences Act 1967
decriminalised homosexuality, with the age of consent being 21. a Private Members Bill introduced by Leo Abse
appointment of a parliamentary Ombudsman in 1967
a special parliamentary officer whom ordinary citizens could appeal to if they felt they had suffered from an abuse of authroity by a government department
abolition of the death penalty in 1969
permanently abolished it for the five remaining offences of which it could be used.
example of parliament not following public opinion on an ethical issue as opinion polls showed the majority of the population were for its retention
Divorce Reform Act 1969
allowed couples to divorce on the grounds of the ‘irretrievable breakdown’ of their relationship
the Open University
a new higher education institution with no entry requirements - Wilson later claimed it was his greatest achievement
Race Relations Acts of 1965 adn 1968
finally made racial discrimination illegal in public places, housing and employment. it also made racial hatred a criminal offence and set up a Race Relations Board with the power to investigate complaints and the Community Relations Commission to promote inter-racial understanding
Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968
prohibited new immigrants settling in Britain without the already established family connections. built on the previous act introduced by the Conservatives in 1962 and made it clear both parties wanted to limit entry. hoped to encourage peaceful racial relations, paired with Race Relations Acts
Mary Whitehouse
conservative activist who campaigned agains the ‘permissive age’ of the sixties. she set up the National Viewer’s and Listener’s Association to lead an attack on what she regarded as the debased standards and immorality of much of public broadcasting aftre BBC and ITV became more relaxed on what they allowed to be broadcasted
technological advancements in Wilson’s government
3 points
- played a role in international television transmission with the Satellite Earth Station in Cornwall, developed in the early 1960’s
- the chemical giant, Imperial Chemical Industries developed a range of pharmaceuticals in the 60’s such as drugs to treat malaria, heart disease and certain forms of cancer - domestic and global importance
- set up the ministry of technology, headed by Frank Cousins
characteristics of the growing youth culture
- experimentation with psychedelic drugs
- wearing of outlandish clothes
- hippy culture (unconvetional in appearance, language and behaviour)
- explosion of popular music e.g. pink floyd, 14 hour technicolour dream
the changing education system
in the 1964 manifesto Labour promised to introduce the comprehensive system and abolish the 11+ after psychologists discredited the theory of innate intelligence and reports showed the tripartite system lead to a huge waste of talent. this took a weight of teacher’s shoulders and allowed them to experiment with new styles of teaching. whilst the comprehensive system wasn’t implemented in this period, the groundworks were laid - government directive to change to comprehensives in circular 10/65 was sent to regional authorities
