5-Effect of Thatcherism on Party Development

Question 1

Conservative party

Answer 1

gained support from a divided conservatives part
- careful not to criticise Heaths U turn before 1974
- enlisted a ‘wet’ Willie Whitelaw to her side - everyone needs a willie’
- rallied the conservatives around her free marked patriotic views before 1979
- was not careful not to ignore the back benchers

ending consensus politics: introduced new political ideas of individualism , low taxation and free market liberalism
- ended conservative support for full employment and nationalised industries
- fought to save Britain from creeping socialism

new conservative elite: changed the social makeup of the Conservative party
- “less posh’ MPs educated at public schools dropped from 75% to 66%
- like Thatcher middle class grammar shcools , self made success made up 44% of MPs in 1987
BUT mainly men. females increased from 9 to 41

Question 2

Labour Party

Answer 2

why? Thatcher challenged creeping socialism aggressively and successfully = forced to readjust to become electable

disillusionment with labour:
labour unable to deal with strikes in 70s - 1979 winter of discontent
attacked by right wing for being “loony left” due to labour activism and militant tendency
eg: group of extreme left wingers who gained control of Liverpool branch

policies :
1983 manifesto =”longest suicide note in history”
policies included scrapping nuclear weapons , withdrawal from EEC and more direct control over banks
- did nothing to deal with the problems facing Britain (high unemployment , decline of industries, riots) = labour looked out of touch

leadership:
leader Michael Foot was scruffy with strong socialist opinions without appeal to ordinary voter

electorate:
thatchers tackling of unions and deindustrialisation diminished labours traditional voter base
right to buy increased conservative support amongst middle class- 60% of labour voters who bought their house voted conservatives

1981- Gang of Four broke away from labour and formed SDP
concerned by TU power
labour then had to compete with SDP for votes