BLAIR 1997-2007 CHAPTER 20

Question 1

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

Tony Blair was a new kind of Labour politician.

how?

Answer 1

His father had been a Conservative supporter and Blair had not joined the Labour Party until after he had graduated from Oxford University.

Question 2

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

He and fellow Labour modernisers such as Brown and Mandelson argued that what was necessary if the Labour Party was going to remain relevant in the modern world?

Answer 2

move the Labour Party away from its traditional policies and beliefs.

Question 3

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

The changes in British society and economics meant that the Labour Party could no longer

think support

Answer 3

rely on the working-class vote electing them to government.

Question 4

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

He was also able to show he was in touch with the electorate:

how? think diana

Answer 4

when the popular Princess of Wales died in 1997, only a few months after he became prime minister, he paid tribute to her, using the phrase ‘the people’s princess’ - his ability to tap into what many people were thinking contrasted starkly with the royal family, who faced unprecedented criticism for their lack of empathy.

Question 4

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

Blair was a charismatic leader who was comfortable with the media.
As well as performing well in Parliament he was extremely adept at appearing on non-political TV programmes.

how did he portray himself?

Answer 4

Despite his privileged background, he portrayed himself as an ordinary person, in both his speech and interests: he wore casual clothes; he had been in a rock band while at university; he watched football and supported his local team, Newcastle United.

Question 5

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

Blair’s popularity soared to what % in 1997?

Answer 5

93 % according to an internal Labour Party poll.

Question 6

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

The methods which helped the Labour Party win the 1997 election continued after it - despite the landslide victory and despite the problems in the Conservative Party, many people in the Labour Party were worried that this success could not last.

what did labour do to keep in power (media, hiding divisions)

Answer 6

There was tight control over the media message and splits within the party, especially between Blair and Brown, were hidden.
By 2007 this control freakery was increasingly disliked and was adding to a feeling that politicians could not be trusted.

Question 7

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

Blair did not want to reverse many of the policies of Thatcher and Major. He called this the Third Way as much of the Conservative Party’s

what were accepted?

Answer 7

trade union reform was accepted; there would be no re-nationalisation of the privatised industries; and he argued that it did not matter whether it was the State, or private companies or charities, which delivered public services as long as the quality of the service was what users wanted.

Question 8

BLAIR AS LEADER, CHARACTER, AND IDEOLOGY

what was the Blair- Brown relationship like?

Answer 8

Blair made Gordon Brown his Chancellor of the Exchequer -> Brown had control over economic policy which also gave him a great deal of power on all domestic policy.
He was too popular within the party and successful as chancellor for Blair to remove him so despite ongoing tension the two men had to work together.
Brown believed that Blair had agreed to step down during his second term so, after 2001, the relationship deteriorated further.
Brown’s supporters increasingly put pressure on Blair to step down and this partly explains why he did so in 2007 -> Brown then became prime minister.
However, despite the strains in their relationship, the Blair- Brown partnership and its role in the creation and government of New Labour was very important and helps to explain its success.

Question 9

CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGE

Acceptance of many policies of the Conservative governments of 1979 to 1997 did not mean that Blair’s government

Answer 9

did not make great changes to Britain.
In fact, New Labour fundamentally reshaped the British constitution

Question 10

DEVOLUTION

• The Labour Party manifesto in 1997 promised new referendums on devolution.

when was it held?

Answer 10

• Devolution referendums were held in 1997.

Question 11

DEVOLUTION

• There was growing resentment that Scotland was ruled by a party in Westminster that it had not voted for.

why?

Answer 11

• 1997  the Conservatives had no MPs in Scotland.

Question 12

DEVOLUTION

• The Scottish people voted in favour of devolving power to a Scottish parliament and also in favour of this parliament having

what powers and with what system they were voted in?

Answer 12

tax-raising powers - led to a new Scottish Assembly being established at Edinburgh, based on a system of proportional representation.

Question 13

DEVOLUTION

• Similarly, the referendum in Wales agreed to the setting up of

Answer 13

a Welsh Assembly in Cardiff, although with more limited powers.

Question 14

DEVOLUTION

• Government in Northern Ireland was also devolved after the

Answer 14

Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

Question 15

DEVOLUTION

Another reform was the introduction of an elected mayor for London in 1999.
* There were some moves to introduce further assemblies in England as well. A referendum was held in

what happened?

Answer 15

the northeast in 2004; when it was overwhelmingly rejected, plans to extend devolution any further were halted too.

Question 16

DEVOLUTION

• However, these changes did not always have the effect that the Labour government hoped for:

what happened in scotland and wales?

Answer 16

• In Scotland and Wales, the Scottish Nationalists (SNP) and Plaid Cymru (PC) continued to gain support contrary to the belief that devolution would take away their momentum.

Question 17

DEVOLUTION

• Introducing the office of an elected mayor of London proved to be a successful change. However, in the first election in 2000, Blair blocked Livingstone from being the Labour candidate -

why?

Answer 17

to Blair, Livingstone, as leader of the Greater London Council, represented all that had been wrong with the ‘loony left’ Labour Party of the 1980s; he feared that Livingstone would harm the image of ‘New Labour’ that the modernisers had since created.

Question 18

DEVOLUTION

• The Labour government also made a major political effort to reform the House of Lords in 1999

what did it result in?

Answer 18

it ended with a rather messy compromise in which hereditary peers were not abolished but cut to 92.

House of Lords reform was seen as unsatisfactory by almost everyone.

Question 18

CITIZENS’ RIGHTS

• The European Convention on Human Rights was incorporated into British law through the Human Rights Act 1998.

what was this?

Answer 18

The European Convention on Human Rights was drafted by European states, including the United Kingdom, after the Second World War and was an attempt to prevent the abuses of human rights. It set up a European Court of Human Rights that any European citizen could appeal to if their human rights were infringed.
Incorporating it into British law meant that British courts would consider the Convention in coming to their judgement. This meant that individuals would not have to take cases to the European Court.

Question 19

DEVOLUTION

• Blair was forced to accept Livingstone back into the party.

why?

Answer 19

• Livingstone subsequently left the Labour Party, ran as an independent and won the election, with the official Labour candidate coming third behind the Conservative candidate.

Question 20

CITIZENS’ RIGHTS

A Freedom of Information Act was passed in 2000. This gave people the right to

Answer 20

request information from public bodies.

Question 20

CITIZENS’ RIGHTS

By 2006 over 100,000 requests were being made each year. Tony Blair later described this as a mistake -

why?

Answer 20

argued he had not realised its implications because he had only just become prime minister but that its existence would prevent politicians from making difficult decisions because they feared their actions would become public knowledge.

Question 21

REFORMS TO PARLIAMENT

Pre-election discussions had been held with the Liberal Democrats about Possible reforms to the electoral system. A commission led by Jenkins was set up to examine alternative voting systems.
It reported in 1998 and recommended that

Answer 21

first-past-the-post be replaced with a more proportional system.
But no changes were made.

Question 22

CITIZENS’ RIGHTS

• However, the way judges interpreted the European Convention on Human Rights sometimes-created unexpected difficulties for the government -

what happened in 2004 ?

Answer 22

government was forced to amend anti-terrorist legislation which allowed the indefinite detainment of UK non-nationals suspected of terrorist activities because the House of Lords ruled that this was incompatible with the Act.

Question 23

DOMESTIC POLICIES

• Labour had won the 1997 election with a manifesto which concentrated on improving public services  the pledge card identified how they would do this and by 2001

Answer 23

all of these five pledges had been met.

Question 24

DOMESTIC POLICIES

• Tony Blair had promised that ‘education, education, education’ would be Labour’s key commitment. In education, the Labour government kept the league tables and inspections introduced by Major’s administration and …

Answer 24

• Targets were extended and more specialist schools were encouraged

Question 25

DOMESTIC POLICIES

as shadow home secretary, Blair had promised that Labour would be ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’.

* This was designed to …

Answer 25

counter the belief that only the Conservative Party was strong on law-and-order issues. There were measures to reduce social exclusion - one of the causes of crime - but this was paired with longer prison sentences.

Question 26

DOMESTIC POLICIES

• At the 2001 election the Labour Party promised more investment in health and education that, combined with reform, would improve their quality -

how?

Answer 26

there would be more teachers, doctors, and nurses but also more accountability to parents and patients to ensure improving exam results and shorter waiting times for operations

Question 26

DOMESTIC POLICIES

Blair’s government also had to face some crises:

4 crises (fuel,disease,hunting dogs)

Answer 26

• Rising fuel prices led to a blockade in 2000 by farmers and lorry drivers.
• Foot and mouth disease hit farmers of cattle and sheep leading to a cull of ten million animals.
• People in the countryside more generally felt that the Labour Party was too urban and did not properly understand their issues  this came to a head when the Labour government tried to ban hunting with dogs.
• There was a long battle with the House of Lords over the issue and the pressure group the Countryside Alliance organised a march which half a million people attended in 2002 before the ban was finally passed in 2004.

Question 27

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• Brown was an extremely important New Labour figure throughout 1997-2007.
• Part of the agreement that he would not stand for the Labour party leadership against Blair was that

Answer 27

he would have complete control over the economic policy  remained chancellor throughout this period.

Question 27

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• Brown made the Bank of England independent from the government  the government would set a target for inflation, but

Answer 27

it was up to the Bank of England to decide where to set interest rates to meet this target.

Question 28

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• Labour inherited very favourable economic circumstances in 1997.

* Brown’s initial priorities were to

Answer 28

keep inflation low, to keep government spending under control and to prove to Middle England that Labour was pro-business and could be trusted with running the economy  enabled Labour to escape from its previous image as a ‘tax-and-spend’ party.

Question 29

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• Brown set the Treasury rules about how much could be borrowed by the government. In effect he was partly following the Thatcherite belief that

Answer 29

the supply of money needed to be controlled.

Question 30

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• The purpose of a stable growing economy was to improve public services. So, after 2001

Answer 30

there was an infection of money into public services.

Question 31

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

The big increases in investment were reflected in

Answer 31

new schools and hospitals and pay rises for doctors, nurses and teachers.
Exam results went up and waiting lists went down.
The Labour government argued that this spending was necessary to make up for years of under-funding and neglect under the Conservative administrations of 1979 to 1997.

Question 32

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• In order to avoid raising taxes, Labour, like the Conservatives, continued to use

Answer 32

private sources of funding for improvements to public services.

Question 33

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• There was some criticism of the funding of new projects through the

Answer 33

Private Finance Initiative (PFI). The buildings usually got completed quickly but debts were stored up for the future.

Question 34

BROWN AND ECONOMIC POLICY

• By 2007 Gordon Brown had completed an unprecedented ten years as chancellor. Throughout this time,

Answer 34

inflation was kept under control and record numbers of people were in work.
* Living standards remained high and the consumer economy boomed.

Question 35

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT

Tony Blair inherited a great political opportunity in Northern Ireland in 1997.

?

Answer 35

A lot of the vital work in building confidence between the unionists and nationalists /republicans had been done under John Major, meaning there was potential to bring an end to the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

Question 36

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT

Hume, the leader of the Social Democratic Labour Party (SDLP), had persuaded

Answer 36

Adams of Sinn Fein that a negotiated settlement was possible.

Question 37

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT

Both sides, the unionists and the republicans, trusted the chairman of the talks,

Answer 37

Mitchell, a former US senator who was Bill Clinton’s special envoy for Northern Ireland.

Question 38

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT

Blair developed a close working relationship with the Irish Taoiseach, Ahern, which continued throughout the period 1997 to 2008; this helped

Answer 38

keep the support of the republicans.

Question 39

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT

The Labour secretary of state for Northern Ireland, Mowlam, kept the paramilitaries on board by visiting them in the Maze prison.

Blair’s personal commitment was also vital:

Answer 39

Blair proved capable of reassuring Trimble and the Ulster Unionists that Sinn Fein could be trusted.

Question 40

NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

on 10 April Mitchell announced that an agreement had been reached and that this agreement would be

Answer 40

put to a referendum of the people, both in Northern Ireland and in the Republic of Ireland.

Question 41

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

The key elements of the agreement included:

7 elements

Answer 41

• both the UK and the Irish Republic would give up their claim on Northern Ireland as it would be up to the people of Northern Ireland to decide whether they would remain part of the United Kingdom or join the Irish Republic
• a devolved Assembly along with a power-sharing Executive would be set up
• links between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and between
• Britain and the Republic of Ireland would be strengthened.
• parties would use their influence to ensure the decommissioning of arms
• there should be an independent commission to oversee reform of policing
• there could be early release of prisoners where paramilitary organisations were committed to peace.

Question 42

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

The referendum was held on 22 May:

what % votes yes in ireland and NI?

Answer 42

• in Northern Ireland 71 % voted for the agreement
• in the Republic, 94 % voted yes.

Question 43

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

• However, there was opposition to the Good Friday Agreement from both sides.

* The leaders of Sinn Fein vs * Trimble and the Ulster Unionists

Answer 43

• The leaders of Sinn Fein, Adams and McGuinness, were very nervous of a republican backlash against them ‘selling out’.
• Trimble and the Ulster Unionists feared the powerful negative influence of Paisley, the leader of the hard-line Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

Question 44

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

• Some of these fears were realised:

why? (omagh bombing)

Answer 44

the Omagh bombing in 1998, which killed 30 people, was carried out by dissident republicans in the so-called Continuity IRA; and over the next 10 years unionists became disillusioned with some parts of the agreement and the DUP overtook the UUP as the main unionist political party in Northern Ireland.

Question 45

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

Blair remained closely involved in Northern Ireland throughout his premiership.
In the following ten years there were a number of disagreements over:

3 things

Answer 45

• whether the paramilitaries were really decommissioning arms.
• over the early release of convicted terrorists.
• over the right of the Protestant Orange Order to march on its traditional routes.

Question 46

THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT 1998

The devolved institutions had to be suspended in 2002 until the St Andrews Agreement in 2006 which reiterated key elements of the Good Friday Agreement.

although not all problems were solved, many people regarded NI as

Answer 46

Blair’s greatest single achievement.