Thatcher economic policy Flashcards
First term
1979-83
Falklands War
1982
Chancellor Geoffrey Howe
1979 - June 1983
Chancellor Nigel Lawson
June 1983 - Oct 1989
Second term
1983-87
Third term
1987-90
Inflation … When came to office 1979, jumped to … By 1980
13.4%
18%
Inflation kept below … … (Period)
9%
1981-89
(Howe cut public spending from … To … …)
£11bn
£9bn
…
… gov subsidised nationalised industries with …
1984
~£1.1bn
By … nationalised industries brought in profit of …
1988
£1.3bn
… Large industries sold off including…
50
British Airways
British Steel
British Telecoms
In total gov made … From sale of assets
£20bn
Num shareholders rose from … To … By …
3mil
11mil
1990
… Council houses sold … (Period)
Over 1mil
1979-88
(industrial production increased by … Each year in 80s)
4.2%
UK economy grew at rate of … Towards end of 80s
8%
Real wage increase by … For average worker … ( just … In France)
10%
1979-94
2%
Num firms grew from … To …
1.9mil
3mil
Act abolished credit & exchange control
Financial Services Act (1986)
80s investment in financial services industry grew by …
300%
Lawson slashed interest rates … In 1985 to … 1988
14%
7.5%
Unemp above … 1980-89
2mil
Unemp peaked at … In …
3.4mil
1986
… Unemp in 1990 (compared to … When T came into office)
9.1%
3.4%
… Workers unemp in Scotland & North mid-80s
1 in 5
Stock market crash
1987
Lawson’s ‘giveaway budget’… Lowered standard rate of tax … To …, top rate … To …
1988
27%
25%
60%
40%
Inflation … By 1990
9.5%
British Steel shed … Workers
95,000
National Coal Board had to close … Pits & make … Workers redundant
75
64,000
1970 … Employed in industry, by 1990 just …
Over 9mil
4mil
Investment in manufacturing only grew … In 80s
8%
60s industrial output = … Of GDP, by 1997 just …
60%
21%
Import export deficit: 1979 …, 1990 …
£5bn
£20bn
Only … Working class males owned shares, … Professional males
9%
50%
Many sold shares back to large companies = 1975 … Individuals owned shares, 1990 fallen to …
38%
20%
Economic growth under T slower than under … & … In …
Macmillan
Wilson
50s & 60s
1950 Britain’s GDP … In world, 1997 …
6th
14th
By 1990 income tax standard rate fell to …, top rate …
25%
40%
VAT rose from … To …
8%
15%
National Insurance rose from … To …
6.5%
8%
By … Widest gap between rich & poor since records began
1991
… ‘Poll Tax’ withdrawn in …
1989
1991
Overall spending on social security & welfare rose … In real terms
60%
(spending on law & order rose …)
36%
(military spending increased … Each year 80s)
3%
1990 gov. Spending = all-time high, deficit of …
Nearly £30bn
Balance of payments deficit … In 1990 (… In 1979)
£47bn
£16bn
Increase in household debt from … In 1980 to … 1989
£16bn
£45bn
Overall personal debt … By 2003
£1.3 trillion
1989 interest rates re-raised to …
15%
