Ministers: Support And Opposition Flashcards
Who were wets?
-senior Tories
-older, more experienced + loyal heathites
-one nation conservatives
What was one nation conservatism?
-19th C social + econ change
-Disraeli - Sybil — story of 2 divided nations in Br = rich + poor
-social reform improve living + working conditions of poor
-‘the palace isn’t safe if the village isn’t happy’
Who were the wets in her cabinet?
-Willie Whitelaw home sec - did challenge thatcher for cons leader 1975
-Heseltine sec of state for environment
-Jim prior employment sec 1979 + NI sec 1981
-Francis Pym defence sec + then foreign sec
Who were dies?
-the officials who held the key posts
-Thatcherites (‘one of us’)
-she was also popular with grassroots members of party + energetic group of supportive MPs in commons
Who were prominent dries in her cabinet?
-Geoffrey Howe Chancellor
-Keith jospeh an intellectual driving force of Thatcherism + dep of Ind
-Nigel Lawson ‘dry’ approach to economy + finance
Who was the only exception of a ‘wet’ that held a key post?
-Jim prior become employment minister
-but this led to disagreement between him + thatcher over anti+union legislation as Thatcherites beloved him be too friendly with union leaders
-Norman tebbit took over his post 1981 when moved to NI office (demoted)
What happened to the ‘wets’ after 1983?
-victory 1983 gen elec consolidated her power as PM + party leader
-most wets were marginalised
-thatcher now commanding leader at head of a team of Thatcherites
What opposition did thatcher face from her ministers?
-some opposition was due to personal disagreements
-John Biffen + Tebbit fell out of favour despite being Thatcherites
What was the most serious challenge to thatcher?
-the Westland affair: Michael Heseltine
-he stormed out of cab meeting, resigning + claimed Thatcher being unconstitutional
-he became a focus of discontent for cons MPs unhappy with thatcher
What was the Westland affair over?
-whether European ties should be encouraged above other ties
-about who would take over the falling Br helicopter company, Westland
What did this dispute show?
-deep divisions about role of gov in econ decisions
-thatchers style of leadership and Br relations ship with Europe
How did Thatcher + Heseltine disagree?
-Heseltine as defence secretary favoured takeover from a European consortium
-thatcher favoured no interference from gov even if meant company go to US company Sikorsky
How did Heseltine react to this?
-he believed Thatcher blocked discussion about decision in cab + would not let concerns about US takeover be made public
-he stormed out cab meeting + resigned
How did thatcher react?
-she said that this crisis was the closest she ever came to resigning
