1990-1997 Flashcards
Who was leader of the Conservative party from 1990-1997?
John Major
Weaknesses of John Major
-Boring and bland personality
-Poor media representation (Grey and boring, as seen in satirical cartoons and sketches, such as ‘Spitting Image’)
Strengths of John Major
-His mild, polite and calm personality was attractive to some voters, after the long rule of Thatcher
John Major’s Foreign Policy
-The Maastricht Treaty of 1992
-The Gulf War of 1990-1991
-Interventions in the Balkans
The Maastricht Treaty of 1992
-This treaty turned the EEC into the EU
-Aimed to deepen European integration
-It set out a single currency for 1999
-The ‘Social Chapter’ was criticised for being too socialist
-Major’s skillful diplomacy helped to secure opt-outs from the single currency and the Social Chapter
-It would cause divisions within the Conservative Party later on
-Was the main reason for Major delaying the election until 1992, against his desires
Poll Tax scrapping
-The policy was highly unpopular with the voters throughout the country
-In 1991, the Poll Tax became the Council Tax
The Citizen’s Charter
-A watered-down version of Thatcherism
-Focused on giving more power to the citizen
-Introduced in 1991
What was unemployment at in 1992?
2.6 million
The 1992 Election
-The opinion polls placed the Conservatives on an average of 29%, and Labour on 41%
-336 seats for the Conservatives
-271 seats for Labour
Why did the Conservatives win the 1992 election?
-A strong Conservative campaign was run
-Major’s popularity, due to his contrast against Thatcher
-The Conservatives were more trusted with the economy
-Labour fought a poor campaign, with an American style
Black Wednesday
-1992
-Britain were forced to exit the exchange rate mechanism (ERM)
-Interest rates were raised to 12%, then 15%
-Norman Lamont sold £30 billion of Britain’s foreign reserves
-The event destroyed the Conservative’s reputation for economic competence
-It divided the party, particularly between Euro-sceptics and Euro-philes
-The government never fully recovered from this crisis
-However, by 1996, the value of the pound, had a higher exchange rate against the DM than when Britain was in the ERM
GDP growth rates from 1995-2005
-Britain 2.7%
-France 1.5%
-Germany 2.0%
-Italy 1.3%
Major’s Domestic policy
-Abandoned the Poll Tax in 1991
-Pit closures (31 were closed in 1991)
-The Citizen’s Charter in 1991
-The BSE Crisis in 1996
Political Sleaze under Major
-Heritage minister David Mellor resigned in 1992 over an affair with a Spanish actress
-Environment minister, Tim Yeo, resigned in 1994 after it was revealed he had had an affair with a Conservative local councillor that had produced a child
-In 1994, Stephen Milligan accidentally throttled himself to death whilst apparently involved in a type of sexually related self-strangulation
-In 1994, there was claims of lobbying by Neil Hamilton, who had supposedly taken money from the Harrods owner, Mohammed Al Fayed
The Gulf War of 1991
-In 1991, an American-led coalition, including large forces from Britain, which was backed by a UN resolution, expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait in a short military campaign
-British casualties were minimal
-It was a successful, and a relatively uncontroversial war for Britain
