Britain 1964-70 Flashcards
Why was there a growth of leisure time in sixties Britain?
- Economic growth meant people had more money and time to invest in Mod Cons.
- TV accounted for 23% of all leisure time by 1969.
What are examples of the expansion of mass media in 60s Britain.
- ‘Up the Junction’ caused controversy because of its depiction of abortion and interracial relationships.
-The governments private lives were in the media, e.g. the Profumo affair.
What is an example of the reduction in censorship in 60s Britain?
The trial of ‘Lady Chatterley’s lover’ was won by Penguin, a book highly controversial because of its sexual content and challenge of social conventions.
what scientific developments were there in the sixties?
The ‘Black Arrow’ was a British satellite carrier rocket developed in the 60s which placed the Prospero satellite into orbit, the only successful orbital launch conducted by the UK.
What progress was there towards female equality?
- Ford machinists strike, where women were classed as less skilled workers than men and so paid less, and the strikes boosted their pay to 92% of men’s.
-Abortion Act (1967), Divorce reform act (1969), Equal pay Act (1970)
was there a youth culture and permissive society?
- Ally pally pothead rally, fundraising for an anti - establishment paper.
-Polls in the 1960s showed that actually the majority of people, young and old, did not support the more relaxed laws on marriage, homosexuality and abortion
Was there a peace movement?
-Demonstrations against Polaris, CND (campaign for nuclear disarmament) symbol of rapidly changing society.
Was there a conservative backlash to the the more permissive society?
Mary Whitehouse campaigned about social liberalism and the British Media, being a part of the ‘Clean up TV’ pressure group.
What is De Jure vs De Facto
De Jure = According to the law
De Facto = ‘In reality’ whether society has actually changed.
What was the economic problem in this period?
- To modernise Britian and reduce the trade gap (373 million inherited)
- Britain was described as being ‘In decline’ compared to other countries such as Western Europe, Japan and the USA.
What was the national plan?
- A programme drawn up by George Brown to increase industrial production and exports, and encouraged cooperation between employers, government and trade unions.
-This did sufficiently impress the electorate for a Labour re-election in ‘66.
-This was quietly abandoned in 1967 because only a few of the key targets were met.
What happened with the devaluation of the pound (making exports cheaper to buy but imports more expensive) in this period?
- Wilson devalued the pound from $2.80 to $2.40 in exchange rates, which lost him a lot of support because it was perceived as a large economical failure.
-Wilson controversially said ‘the pound in you pocket isn’t worth any less’, a deeply misleading statement. - It could be argued this was over dramatized and didn’t cause a trade deficit.
What happened with the application to the EEC in this period?
-Due to economic worries at home, Wilson applied to the EE in 1967 despite party uncertainty (joining the EEC would mean free trade without tariffs).
-The application was backed by the Conservatives and the Liberals, but opposed by 36 Labour MP’s.
-This was vetoed by De Gaulle, humiliating Wilson, however this did lay the groundwork for Britain to be accepted in ‘73.
What was the private sectors balance of payments like in 1969?
In surplus of 1362 million, showing sound economic policy.
What were the economic challenges of this period? (2)
To keep prices down and handle the trade unions.
