1979 Election

Question 1

What was callaghans miscalculation

Answer 1

Autumn of 78 - Shirley Williams said to hold an election when Labour were receiving rise in polls but private polling convinced Callaghan not to - WOD set in after

Question 2

What was the rates of unemployment from 1970-77

Answer 2

2.6% to 6.2%

Question 3

What was the rates of inflation from 1974 to 1977

Answer 3

9.3% to 16%

Question 4

What was the Tory narrative

Answer 4

-Labour wasn’t coping
- Labour was enslaved to trade unions

Question 5

What were the election results

Answer 5

Cons - 339 seats
Labour - 269
Liberal - 11
Majority - 43

Question 6

How did media play an important role

Answer 6

-Saatchi and saatchi- Labour isn’t working
-thatcher appeared well to the media
- opinion polls : closing gap encouraged both voters

Question 7

Newspapers role

Answer 7

The sun - cons paper with 3.9m readers
Daily mirror - Labour paper with 3.1m readers

Question 8

Thatchers leadership

Answer 8

31 March 1979 - Airrey Neave car bomb assassination
- Thatcher responded quickly , Callaghan asked a junior minister for a statement

Question 9

What was liberal party’s problem

Answer 9

46 seats Labour -> cons
-libs blamed Callaghan
+ Thorpe scandal

Question 10

What was the Thorpe scandal

Answer 10

Thorpe conspiring murder to his former gay lover
- helped thatchers rise to power

Question 11

Conservative policies

Answer 11

High on principle - reduce gov spending , trade union rules , tackle inflation , party of law and order , new start

Question 12

What was the winter of discontent

Answer 12

Uk economy had high inflation , unemployment and stagnant growth - severe disruptions and unrest
- crisis , what crisis

Question 13

Why were trade unions used by the conservatives

Answer 13

-portrayed Labour Party as weak to union demands and trade unions holding the country to ransom
-WOD
- conservatives promised to reduce trade union power