Section 3- 1970-79 Flashcards
What happened in the 1970 election?
Edward Heath won
when was the industrial relations act?
1971
when was the UK accepted into the EEC
1973
When did Wilson become PM for the 2nd time?
1974
When was the referendum on EEC membership
1975
who succeeded Wilson as PM?
1976- Callaghan
when was the Lib-Lab pact?
1977
When was the winter of discontent?
1978-79
When did Edward Heath become leader of the conservative party?
1965
how many seats did Heath win with?
30 seats
what happened within the conservatives in 1974?
leadership contest- Thatcher won in 1975
what was Heath’s economic policy?
‘one-nation toryism’
end of public funding for ‘lame duck’ industries
Decimalisation of the british currency
Anthony Barber (Chancellor of the Exchequer), introduced cuts to public spending and taxes leading to inflation but NOT economic growth
Unemployment increased – unusual economic phenomenon became known as stagflation
what was Heath’s famous U-turn?
After aiming for less state intervention, unemployment reaching nearly a million meant they were forced into it – nationalisation of Rolls Royce in 1971 and funding for Upper Clyde Shipbuilders – Heath’s U-turn
what had unemployment decreased by in 1973
500,000
what economic effect did the Yom Kippur war have?
1973, OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) declared an oil embargo
What did NUM do in 1973 (national union of miners)
price of oil quadrupled and miners demanded a pay rise
industrial relations issues in 1970
dockers’ strike, pay settlement for dustmen, postal workers’ strike, ‘go-slow’ by power workers
what happened to the national board for prices and income?
Heath abolished it in 1970
what influence did Barbara Castle’s in place of strife 1971 do?
set up a Court to provide strike ballots and a ‘cooling-off period’ before strikes
TUC (Trades Union Congress) and CBI (Confederation of British Industry) opposed the act
what did the miner’s trike cause
3 day week
1974 election
March 1974 – Labour won election, but in a minority government – inherited inflation of 15% and balance of payment deficit of £3 billion
In October, Wilson called another election, and won a majority of 3 seats
How did Wilson deal with the industrial relations?
Wilson had negotiated the Social Contract with TUC in 1973 while in opposition – voluntary pay restraint in exchange for repeal of Industrial Act and pay board
Reached an agreement with NUM – end of state of emergency and three-day week
How did Dennis Healey help deal with industrial relations?
issued budgets in March and July to promote economic growth while not annoying unions
Rise in inflation due industrial crisis – Healey gave a speech warning of this in January 1975
budget of April 1975
huge increase in taxation and cut in public spending
what did the National Enterprise Board (NEB) set up in 1974?
set up in 1974 under Tony Benn to take care of government shares in private companies and provide financial aid where necessary
what The Social Contract that was not limiting wage demands from unions lead to?
1975 pay restraint policy
when was desequilibrium in balance of payments led to pressure on sterling
1976
economy under Callaghan’s premiership?
Application for loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of $3.9 billion was successfully gained by Denis Healey in December 1976
Economy began to recover as a result but was perceived as a humiliation
By 1978 – nine oilfields in production in the North Sea, inflation fell to 10% and unemployment to 1.6 million
how did Callaghan survive the vote of no confidence?
he avoided this by making a pact with the Liberal Party so that 12 would vote with the government, giving him a majority
devolution acts
1978 devolution Acts were passed and referendums held on 1 March 1979
Wales: 20.3% YES/79.7% NO
Scotland/: 51.3% YES/ 48.4% NO – a simple majority not considered enough – SNP withdrew support from Labour
general election 1979
government lost vote of no confidence in Parliament over Scottish devolution(first time since 1924)
Majority of media on Conservatives’ side
Labour vote only dropped by 3%
Conservative won a majority of 43 seats due to drop in support for SNP and Liberals
when was international Women’s Day inaugurated by the UN?
1977
when did the WLM disrupt Miss World Contest
1970
what did the demonstrations in March 1971 in London and Liverpool demand?
equal pay and free 24-hour nurseries
when was the first rape crisis centre opened in London
1976
when was the domestic violence act introduced?
1976- court orders to restrain violent partners
women able to take out mortgage independently
1971
1975
Equal Pay Act of 1970 came into force
Reforms to State Earnings Related Pension Scheme and Social Security Pensions Act
Employment Protection Act – paid maternity leave and outlawed dismissal for pregnancy
what happened to women’s wages under the sex discrimination act?
rose from 59% (1970) to 70% (1977) of men’s wages
divisions over europe
Pro-European Heath had replaced non-committal Wilson
Pompidou replaced Charles de Gaulle, and believed that Britain was valuable to Europe
Most details had already been arranged in 1962, and so Britain’s accession to the EEC 1971-3 was mostly a formality
Enoch Powell and some Conservatives believed that joining would reduce Britain’s sovereignty and links to the Commonwealth
Labour was also divided, with Labour Left reluctant to join and Roy Jenkins leading the Europhiles
To try to foster unity, Wilson tried to negotiate the terms and called for a national referendum on the issue
69 Labour MPs secured government majority
European referendum 1975
Wilson allowed ministers to campaign for the referendum according to their own views – no collective ministerial responsibility
By 1975, media and popular support was strongly behind EEC
‘Yes’ campaign led by Roy Jenkins, Edward Heath, most senior Conservatives, and Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal leader)
‘No’ campaign led by Barbara Castle and Michael Foot (far left); Tony Benn, Enoch Powell (now UUP), Ian Paisley (DUP)
Result: Yes – 17 million (68.3%), No – 8 million (32.5%)
Victory for Wilson as he had avoided Labour split
Roy Jenkins left parliament to become a European commissioner
why was Heath less focused on atlantic alliance when applying for the EEC
did not want to be seen as a pawn for the USA
what was one of the reasons Nixon (US president) had a good relationship with Heath?
Heath was more supportive of the Vietnam war than Wilson
what worsened the US-UK relationship
Yom Kippur War of 1973, as UK and Europe refused to allow US to use air bases in case Middle East cut off oil supplies
Wilson, Callaghan and the US
Both Wilson and Callaghan continued Atlantic Alliance, especially after Callaghan met Carter in Guadeloupe in January 1979 to negotiate replacing Polaris missiles with Trident
what caused concerns over soviet influence in eastern Europe?
Georgi Markov affair of 1978
how did heath become a ‘People’s Friendship Envoy’ - highest honour for a foreigner?
a series of visits after 1974
when did Chinese Premier Hua Guofeng visit Britain
1979
