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British History - Topic 5 > Conservatives Under Major 1990-1997 > Flashcards

Conservatives Under Major 1990-1997 Flashcards

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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
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2
Q

Describe Major’s cabinet

A
  • Exchequer: Norman Lamont
  • Foreign: Douglas Hurd
  • no women
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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%
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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)
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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

British History - Topic 5 (5 decks)

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