Conservatives Under Major 1990-1997 Flashcards
1
Q
What were Major’s moves as Chancellor of the Exchequer?
A
- Oct 1990
- persuaded Thatcher to abandon long-standing opposition to EMS
- Britain’s inflation at time 3x that of Germany (had reason)
- Short term triumph long term disaster
- New savings scheme - TESSA - popular
2
Q
Describe Major’s cabinet
A
- Exchequer: Norman Lamont
- Foreign: Douglas Hurd
- no women
3
Q
Towards General Election
What were early problems for Major + why was it a likely defeat?
A
- Recession continued
- By election results, opinion polls the European Parliament elections (1989) - pointed to C defeat in 1992
- Conservatives lost 900 council seats in local election May 1991
- April Opinion poll: L:41%, C: 35%, Lib dem: 20%
4
Q
Towards General Election
Economic problems?
A
- Unemployment grew in year 1991 from 1.9mil to 2.6 mil
- Interest rate cut but housing market depressed
- Business and consumer confidence remained poor
- record number of business failures + flat repossessions
- trade deficit fell but Britain’s trade balance remained in red
- inflation fell (higher than other industrialised nations)
5
Q
Towards General Election
What was the State of Labour?
A
- Election campaign positive + concentrated on moderation
- Neil Kinnock enthusiastic and effective campaigner
- Could not shake off old Labour image
- “shadow budget” - drew attention to likelihood of tax increases
- this and press undermined Labour’s position
6
Q
Towards General Election
How did the British Electoral System influence Conservative win?
A
- Of the 651 MPs elected in 1992, 170 had majorities of 10% or less
- Conservatives won seats more “cheaply” in terms of votes than other parties
- organisation of system helped them
- 250,000 poll tax evaders likely harmed labour not C
7
Q
Towards General Election
How did the press influence the conservative win of election?
A
- Out of National daily papers 7/11 backed C only 3 L
- C supporting papers accounted for 67% of newspaper sales
- 3 tabloids vigorously campaigned for C: Sun, Daily Mail and Daily express
8
Q
Towards General Election
How did the Tory election campaign influence their win?
A
- main issue: economy, taxation and welfare
- C attacked labour’s spending plans claiming they would lead to higher inflation and taxation
- Rhetoric of classless society and Citizens Charter - which obliged to NHS, British Rail and other public bodies, sought to win wavering SDP/ Lib dem voters
9
Q
Towards General Election
Describe Major’s win
A
- narrow but unexpected victory: 42% vs L: 35%
- Labour still tainted with extremist view had in early 1980s
- L failed to secure more than half working class vote
10
Q
After the election nothing went right for Major:
Briefly describe this
A
- Controversy over Maastricht Treaty divided CP: Had to come to understanding with Ulter Unionists to protect gov majority
- Economy remained depressed
- housing market remained stagnant
- Problems with ERM
11
Q
How were taxation levels under Major?
A
- Higher by 1990s than had been in 1970s
- Britain’s long term economic decline not halted
12
Q
Why did Black wednesday happen?
A
- Unsustainable position of Britain in ERM
- Required Britain to maintain fixed rate of exchange (2.95 German marks to pound)
- Sep 1992 British currency came under pressure
- had to devalue or face even greater collapse of output
13
Q
What was Black Wednesday?
A
- Instead of devaluing ERM, spent Britain’s currency reserves against wave of selling that ended Black Wednesday - 16 Sep 1993
- Lamont announced decision to leave on TV
- left ERM with value of sterling down by 20%
- £5 bill wasted trying to stay in ERM
- interest rates increased dramatically
- loss of credibility of gov
14
Q
What were the effects of Black Wednesday on the Conservatives and Major?
A
- Within relatively short time - economy stabilised + leaving ERM had many benefits
- Political consequence - disastrous
- steep drop for support for C in opinion polls
- JM authority weakened
- criticised by newspapers
15
Q
What was the effect of Black Wednesday on the economy?
A
- leaving prevented Britain from having to keep high interest rates
- thus exchange rate decreased
- Unemployment rates slowed down; housing market picked up
- American economy was coming out of recession - world trade expanding
- British economy benefited from impact of financial deregulation
16
Q
What was the economic situation by 1997?
A
- Mostly positive:
- unemployment down
- productivity up (not much)
- Car ownership increased
- House prices rose - negative equity thing of past
-Business in support of gov policies - people reluctant to give major credit for this
17
Q
What were the political problems under Major?
A
- Gov rep never recovered after withdrawal of ERM and Major’s government lost every by-election it fought
- May 1983 Tories lost 452 local council seats
- 1995: 1,800 council seats lost
- eventually C lost HoC majority
- By 1996 Major forced to rely on support from Ulster Unionists for majority which ruined plans for dealing with NI
18
Q
What was the relationship with the miners like under Major?
A
- continued to close pits and cut jobs
- Political storm
- Felt that Hesseltine was going back on repeated assurances given to UDM: pits would be open -loyal UDM pits closed
- A privatised electricity industry unable to buy British coal
- Plan went ahead and sold remaining industry to private company - undervalued
- June 1993: workforce down to 44,000, less than half 1990 level
19
Q
What kind of stance was Major in relation to Thatcher?
A
- not centrist as expected
- described by historian “Thatcherism on autopilot”
- even things SHE wouldn’t do were done
20
Q
What did Major do with NHS?
A
- further reorganised to create an “internal market”
- led to widespread complaints of burgeoning bureaucracy and inequality
- fund holding GPs in control of own budgets seemed to get a better deal for their pateints than non-fund holding collegues
21
Q
What did Major do with Education?
A
- Reduction of power of the local education authorities by giving schools powers of management
- introduction of national testing and performance league tables
- the revision of training of teachers
- imposition of a system of national inspection (OFSTED)
- All aroused opposition within teaching profession
22
Q
What was Major’s attitude to privitisation?
A
- continued
- sold capital assets due to severe pressure on public finances
- British rail and nuclear power industry
- coal industry in 1994
- railways 1996
- Private Finance Initiative (PFI) introduced
- public-private partnerships
-private companies would fund infrastructure improvements that State would pay for over length of contract
- public-private partnerships
23
Q
What was the Citizens Charter?
A
- introduced 1991
- attempt to give public sector users more power over quality of services they received by providing info about standards they should expect
(e.g education more testing + schools publish results) - problem not all effective
- e.g the cones hotline - motorists could call if motorway lanes closed without any sign of roadworks-pointless
24
Q
What was Major’s attitude to Civil liberties?
A
- Civil liberties suffered sustained attack under Michael Howard - Home sec
- restricted right of free assembly
- gave police draconian powers to control raves and travellers
- abolished right to silence
- obliged courts to impose fixed sentence for certain crimes
- drove up prison population massively: increased overcrowding and brutality
25
Q
What was the controversy surrounding Tory Party funding?
A
- Asil Nadir, Turkish businessman charged with fraud in london, fled
- Lord McAlpine, Tory Treasurer, revealed he contributed £440,000
- and that party had taken money from Hong Kong nationals and American businessmen
- accusations about money from Saudi Arabia
- Resulted in Qs regarding possible favours to individuals and potential influence on Tory policy
26
Q
How do polls show how rubbish Major was?
A
- July 1993: Gallup poll, published in Telegraph revealed conservatives most unpopular gov since 1938
- and Major most unpopular PM
27
Q
What was the “back to basics” movement?
What scandal followed this?
A
- Autumn 1993: designed to emphasise core values in family, education and morality
- rewarded by string of tabloid revelations about the sexual indiscretions of own ministers
- 1994: problem
- 8 C MPs and two other prominent C embarrassed Major by exposure of their adultery, corruption + bizarre sexual practices: resignation + suicide followed
28
Q
What were other scandals the Conservative gov was implicated in?
A
- 1993/94 Scott Enquiry disclosed instances of illegal arms dealing with Iraq - further embarrassed
- Several C MPs implicated
- 1996 it was revealed a n. of MPs selling political services and receiving assorted “favours” from business interests
- called “cash for questions” scandal
29
Q
What was Major’s relationship with Eurosceptics?
A
- Euro-sceptics gained upper hand in party
- Major forced to reduce pro-Euro policies leaving Britain more isolated within EU
- apparent success of Masstricht quickly evaporated
- Major provoked leadership challenge in 1995 in attempt to reassert control of party
- beat redwood but not respect
- Conservatives appeared utterly divided party led by a man with no authority
30
Q
What was relations like with NI after 1985
A
- Anglo-Irish Agreement deteriorated and south became dismayed by British decision to apply brake to reform process
- disagreed on human rights issues:
- Stalker affair
- Birmingham six
- Guildford Four
- Maguire Family
31
Q
What did the Irish republicans do in 1980s?
A
- Gerry Adams became president of Sinn Fein in 1983
- Began to see advantages to using “ballot box and the gun” as a twin-track strategy
- attempting to penetrate political system whilst IRA rearming themselves with arsenal so large that it converted them into one of the worlds best equipped underground organisations
32
Q
How were the IRA helped by Libya?
A
- Libyan ruler, Colonel Gaddafi provided weapons for IRA
- 4 shipments of arms
- 1000 rifles
- Semtex plastics explosives
- Heavy machine guns
- SAM-7 missiles
- Anti Aircraft guns
- authorities new nothing, worst intelligence lapse for decades
33
Q
How did the IRA become more violent?
A
- 1987 the IRA bombed Remembrance Day service in Enniskillen, killing 11: shocked world
- 1991 IRA exploded a substantial motar bomb near PM
- 1992: IRA bombed the City which inflicted more financial damage than all of the other 10,000 bombs which had gone off in NI
- Baltic Exchange bombing caused more than £700 million in damage
- saw the potential of IRA seriously damaging entire British economy
34
Q
What was the 1990s dominated by in terms of norther ireland - to sort problem?
A
- The Peace Process 1993-1994
- Starting point was the Anglo-Irish Agreement
35
Q
How was secret negotiations with Sinn Fein an important aspect of Peace Process?
A
- web of secret talks between Sinn Fein, church and state made this possible
- Gerry Adams (Sinn Fein) had been secretly meeting with John Hume (SDLP leader); leaders of Irish church; British gov
- breaching general mainstream rule
- secret communications came to be known as the back channel
- 1993: a message a week
36
Q
Importance of John Hume
A
-working class catholic background
- 1990s most influential nationalist politician in NI
- challenged traditional view that root of problem Britain
37
Q
How did John Major play an important role in the peace process?
A
- took risks in back channel
- 1992 only had slender majority in Commons
- had many people against him
- parliamentary arithmetic meant that 9 Ulster Unionist MPs great value to Major (back door could have jepardised this)
- Major convinced that NI needed serious and sustained attention - unlike other PMs
38
Q
How was John Hume’s deceleration of peace important to the peace process?
A
- 1991 Hume wrote a draft declaration, based on 1985 Hillsborough Agreement
- aim was to demonstrate that Britain was not standing in way of Irish unity
- persuade republicans to halt attempt to unite Ireland by violence
- showed document Haughey, Reynolds, Adams + major
- By 1993 Hume and Adams announced publicly that they made progress + ready to bring report to Dublin
39
Q
What was the reaction to John Hume’s deceleration of peace - negative?
A
- 1993 public announcement from Hume and Adams that they were ready to put report to Dublin
- response violence
- Desperate IRA attempts to assassinate leading loyalists
- Loyalist gunmen went on rampage in retaliation
- increased desire for peace
40
Q
Describe the fruition of the peace agreement what was passed?
A
- The December 1993 Downing Street Declaration
- intertwined concepts of self-determination and consent which Hume and Adams spent so much time
- In Feb 1994 the US Clinton administration dropped the long-standing ban on Adams entering the US
41
Q
Describe the IRA ceasefire + return to terrorism
A
- 1994 came the ceasefire announcement
- after 25 years of conflict and 3000 deaths
- IRA called it a halt
- got impatient and went back to violent methods
- Bomb attacks damaged the financial district at Canary Wharf and destroyed centre of Manchester in 1996
- peace process continued
42
Q
Conservative Divisions:
What were divisions like under Thatcher?
A
- By last years in her premiership - divisions apparent
- Thatcher’s use of Professor Alan Walters as economic adviser infuriated Chancellor Nigel Lawson who resigned in 1989
- Thatcher also alienated Geoffrey Howe by moving him from Foreign Office to lesser post and his resignation speech triggered fall of Thatcher
43
Q
Conservative Divisions:
What were divisions like under Major?
A
- Divisions in CP worsened
- Right wingers pushed for more radical social policies
- Politicians with leadership ambitions saw chance to advance claims
- Eurosceptics saw opening to push gov out EU
- Press speculations about leadership challenges
- Comment from R-W press hostile
- By summer 1995 Major called for leadership election so he could be re-elected to own job
44
Q
Conservative Divisions:
How did the re-election contest go for Major?
A
- 1995
- Main challenger was John Redwood who was backed by Thatcherites and Eurosceptics
- Major promised Heseltine deputy leadership if he won
- result of first ballot decisive: 218 for Major and 89 for Redwood
- small majority
- attitude of press remained hostile
- Criticised by Blair and Thatcher
45
Q
Conservative Divisions
Describe the 1997 election?
A
- background of sleaze and reputation of weak leader
- Major called general election for May 1997
- Sun declared in favour of Blair government
- C propaganda lacked originality and flair
- results:
Labour: 419 seats
Conservatives: 165 seats
Liberals: 46 seats - Major resigned as party leader
46
Q
Describe resignation of Chancellor of Exchequer
A
- 1993 Chancellor Lamont’s proposal to extend VAT to domestic fuel
- provoked widespread anger: forced to resign in May
- replaced by kenneth clark
