Blair Flashcards
What did Labours pledge card say about class sizes
Cut class sizes to 30 for under 5,6 and 7 year olds by using money from the assisted places scheme
What did Labours pledge card say about the NHS
Cut NHS waiting lists by treating an extra 100,000 patients as a first step by releasing 100 Million saved from NHS red tape
What did Labours pledge card say about benefits
Get 250,000 under 25 year olds off benefits and into work by using money from a windfall levy on the privatised utilities
What did Labours pledge card say about tax
No rise in income tax rates
Cut VAT on heating to 5% and inflation and interest rates as low as possible
What had Labour moved away from
“Socialist extremism”
What were 2 conservative arguments against Labour
That Labour had “stolen Conservative policies”
That “new labour” was “old labour” in disguise
Who defeated the “big beast” Michael Portillo
Stephen Twigg
What was tactical voting like in the 1997 election
Labour voters were voting Liberal democrat and vice versa
How many Seats did Labour win in the 1997 election
418
How many seats did the Conservatives win in the 1997 election
166
What did Blair ensure that Labour wasn’t perceived as
“Tax and spend” economics
What song did Labour use in their election campaign
Things can only get better
Popular pop song
Who improved Labours relations with the media
Former journalist
Blairs press secretary Alastair Campbell
What was Aids reffered to in the 1980s
“The gay plague”
What kind of character was Blair
Charismatic leader who was comfortable with the media
How did Blair present himself
Portrayed as an ordinary person despite his privileged background
What phrase did Blair say about princess Diana increased his popularity
“The peoples princess”
What did Labour promise regarding devolution
Promised new referendums on devolution
Remember constitutional change- learned in politics
When was the freedom of information act
2000
What did the freedom of information act do
Gave people the right to request information from public bodies
How many requests had been made from the public per year for information
100,000
What did Blair describe himself for passing the freedom of information act
“Naïve, foolish, irresponsible nincompoop”
What had Blair said about education
“Education, education, education”
What had Blair said about crime
“Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime”
What did rising fuel prises lead to in 2000
A blockade by farmers and lorry drivers
- Foot and mouth disease hit farmers of cattle and sheep leading to a cull of 10 million animals
What did Gordon Brown try to prove regarding the economy
That Britain was pro business and could be trusted with running the economy
What did Brown do to the economy after 2001
Injected money into the economy to improve public services
What were the key elements of the Good Friday agreement
Independent commission to oversee reform of policing
Devolved assembly along with a power sharing executive would be set up
Both the UK and ROI would give up their claim on northern Ireland as it would be up to NI
When was the referendum for the good Friday agreement
22nd May 1998
In Northern Ireland what percentage of people voted for the good Friday agreement
71%
What was an incident following the good Friday agreement
The Omagh bombing
How many people were killed in the Omagh bombing
30
When was the Northern Ireland assembly suspended
2002
What brought the Northern Irish assembly back
The St Andrews agreement of 2006 which reiterated the key elements of the good Friday agreement
Who carried out the Omagh bombing
dissident republicans
In 1999 who delivered a speech criticising Thatcherism
Peter Lilley
What did Peter Lilley say in his speech in 1999
That the public was suspicious of further reform that was Thatcherite despite accepting previous economic reforms
What was the result of Peter Lilleys speech
Caused huge uproar within the conservative party
How did Hague feel even more threatened in 1999
Portillo was elected to parliament in a by election
What did some think about Portillo
He should’ve been leader in 1997
When did William Hague resign from being Conservative leader
2001
Why did Iain Duncan Smith win the leadership election
Negative voting against Clarke and Portillo
What is compassionate conservatism
political philosophy characterised by an awareness of the social implications of economic policy
Where did Iain Duncan Smith visit that convinced him to do more to tackle poverty
Deprived Easterhouse estate in Glasgow
What did Iain Smith vote against the repeal of
Section 28
Against allowing unmarried couples to adopt
How did voting against section 28 demonstrate divisions within the party
Modernisers such as David Cameron and George Osbourne refused to follow the party line
What had Duncan Smith done before which undermined him demanding loyalty from backbenchers
Key architect of the rebellions that Major faced over Maastricht
Did Iain Duncan Smith support entry into the Iraq war
Yes he supported the Iraq war
What was the reaction of Duncan Smith supporting entry into the Iraq war
Heavily criticised by some including Kenneth Clarke
What was the result of the conservatives and Iain Smith supporting entry into the Iraq war regarding Labour
They found it difficult to criticise Labour for the unpopular decision of invading Iraq
Which groups both supported Michael Howard
Both Mods and Rockers supported Howard
What did Howard re-establish in the party
Party unity
Who did David Cameron defeat to become Conservative Leader
Defeated David Davis
What was Camerons priority regarding the Conservatives target demographic
Reach out beyond the Conservatives narrow core support to make the party more tolerant and inclusive
What did Cameron do to make himself appealing
Visited the Arctic and cycled to Westminster
What opposition did Cameron face within the party
From the right of the party for rejecting Thatcherism
Norman Tebbit
what was William Hague mocked for
His speech in 1981
Mocked for wearing a baseball cap
Appearing in the Notting hill carnival
Boasted that he drank 14 pints a day as a teen
What did Hague return to for the 2001 election
Retreated to right wing policy positions
appeal to conservative core vote
“The fight to save the pound”
Which notable figure appeared in an election rally for Hague in 2001
Margaret thatcher
What affect did Thatcher being involve have
Involvement was attractive to many Conservative supporters
Did not broaden the support
Undermined Hague’s leadership
Reminded some voters of why they had rejected the conservative party previously
How many seats did Labour win in the 2001 election
412
How many seats did the Conservatives win in the 2001 election
165
What was the extent of the Conservatives defeat in 2001
Worst defeat since 1832
Cant make argument that electorate wanted a change in government
What did Michael Portillo describe the 2005 manifesto to be
Victor Meldrew
-Grumpy old man complaining about the state of Britain
When was UKIP founded
1993
At the 2005 general election where did UKIP place
4th
What did New Labour believe about Trade unions
The parties links with trade unions and memories of the winter of discontent was one of the reasons they hadn’t been electable in the 1980s
What did Labour do regarding privatisation
Did not reverse them
Extended them
By 2004 which trade union had been expelled from the party
The RMT m
When was the national minimum wage introduced
1998
What commission was set up to manage the national minimum wage
Low pay commission
In 1997 how many women were elected as Mps
120
How many of the 120 female MPs in 1997
101
What did Labour introduce regarding female MPs
Introduced all women shortlists to half of its winnable seats
Who was the female secretary appointed in 2006
Margaret Beckett
By 2007 how many hours of free nursery education were all 3 and 4 year olds entitled to
12.5
Rise to 15 in 2010
What percentage of what men were earning how much did women earn in 2007
87%
When was the social exclusion unit set up
1997
What else did the social exclusion aims lead to
Sure start centres
What did Sure start centres do
Aimed to help families with children by providing guidance and information and ensure that children were supported to be ready for school
By 2005 how much had child poverty been reduced by since 1999
A quarter
Despite Labours positive reforms regarding youth what was the number of NEEts increased by
increased to almost 20% by 2007
What was the Antisocial behaviour Order (ASBO)
Court order which put limits on what the defendant could do.
Ban/curfew on someone going somewhere
Breaching an ASBO was a criminal offence
What was the Macpherson report
Published in 1998
about murder of Stephen Lawrence
Identified problems of institutional racism in the Metropolitan police
What did BBC chairman Greg White say about his workforce
He said that his workforce was “hideously white”
When did a terrorist attack happen in London
July 2005
What happened in the terrorist attack in London
52 killed
4 suicide bombers
attacked 3 underground trains
What happened 2 weeks after the attacks in early July 2005
Another terrorist attack
4 more suicide bombers attempted a similar attack but the bomb failed to explode
Culprits were British citizens
What incident happened following the failed suicide bombing
On 22nd July
Young Brazillian Jean Charles de Menezes wrongfully killed
What was one belief for why British Muslims felt alienated
Blair deciding to invade Iraq
What 2 acts did Labour pass in 2006
the National identity card act
Terrorist act
What did the 2006 terrorist act do
Increased the amount of time a suspect could be held without charge to 28 days
Fewer than 90 days that government wanted
What was a MORI opinion poll result on in August 2005
Multiculturalism makes Britain a better place
62% in favour
When was the Euro launched
1999
What was Blairs outlook on Europe
Enthusiastic about strengthening the role of the EU with the wider world
What were relations with Europe like at the end of Blairs reign
Still excellent relations with French prime minister Sarkozy and German chancellor and with “new europe”
What were relations with Europe like at the end of Blairs reign
Still excellent relations with French prime minister Sarkozy and German chancellor and with “new Europe”
Who was American president during start of Blairs reign
Blairs reign
What did Blair think about the importance of the special relationship
Vitally important to maintain the special relationship
Blair believed in Liberal interventionism what is this
Belief that a country should intervene in another country for “liberal” aims like supporting human rights
When did the war on terror begin
After 9/11 attacks
What happened in Serbia in 1999
NATO bombings against Serbia forced them to pull their forces out of Kosovo
What opposition went against the intervention in Iraq
“stop the war” march in 2003
Over 1 million people there
What was the Iraq war called
“Blairs war”
What was Labours foreign policy aims in 1997
Making UK a leading player in Europe
Supply an ethical content to foreign policy
Making Britain a leading partner in a world community of nations
