1979 election

Question 1

give 3 reasons why Thatcher won the 1979 election:

Answer 1

1. labour weaknesses e.g. winter of discontent
2. thatcher’s personality and her campaign
3. conservative manifesto

Question 2

describe the 1st reason:

Answer 2

-the winter of discontent was a period of severe industrial unrest where labour where unable to control strikes or maintain public services
-this severely weakened Labour’s image and popularity
-the situation was worsened when Callaghan infamously said ‘crisis? what crisis?’
-in march 1979 labour lost a vote of no confidence that the tories had tabled

Question 3

describe the 2nd reason:

Answer 3

-Thatcher was from the lower middle class therefore she wasn’t part of the establishment which lots of people liked
-she was a very good speaker and good at connecting with the public
-she took a tough stance on unions which the public mostly supported especially after winter of discontent
-she hired saatchi + saatchi to manage her campaign, they created the slogans ‘Britain isn’t working’ and ‘what’s best for britain’
-her campaign focused on highlighting Labour’s weaknesses and creating a positive outlook for a possible conservative future

Question 4

describe the 3rd reason:

Answer 4

-her manifesto appeased a wide range of people
-it aligned with the valence issue of the time
-promise to bring unions under gov. control popular with business owners
-promise to reduce inflation popular with middle class
-right to buy council houses promise popular with lower classes