Thatcher part 4 - effect of Thatcherism on politics Flashcards
what were ‘the wets’ in Thatcher’s first cabinet?
those who had been appointed by Heath and were committed to the post-war consensus
e.g Jim Prior, Lord Hailsham
why did Thatcher refer to them as traitors?
they wanted to compromise with socialism
this demonstrates her uncompromising ideology in viewing socialism as the enemy
why was Thatcher unable to ‘completely exclude moderates from the cabinet’?
moderate MPs such as Prior were chiefly interested in preventing economic policies from causing social breakdown
why was Jim Prior worried about monetarism?
he feared that is would lead to rising inequalities, and therefore increased social tension
what defines One Nation Conservatives and why would Thatcher oppose them?
saw themselves as part of the natural aristocracy who had a duty to ensure the poor were provided for
Thatcher opposed this as she was against the welfare state and the dependency it created
what two factors led to the decline of One Nation Conservatism?
their values were rejected in favour of commitment to free market
party was increasingly dominated by people who weren’t born right but made their own money
where in the government did Thatcher place most of the ‘drys’?
promoted them to key economic positions
why was the rose of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland seen as a ‘dumping ground’?
position for ministers out of favour
1981: cabinet reshuffle put Prior in this position
why was the 1981 cabinet reshuffle reported as ‘the purging of the wets’?
key moderates were sacked and Thatcherites were promoted to important roles
what did Thatcher mean in 1981 when she said she was the ‘rebel leader of an establishment party’?
she viewed herself as a radical leader in a party of moderates
how long did it take Thatcher to fully dominate the Conservative party ideology?
by the end of the 80s her ideas were dominant and older consensus ideas were a minority
this indicated that Thatcher had a powerful effect on the party and changed in permanently
Who was Michael Heseltine and how did he challenge Thatcher?
one of the ‘wets’ who survived the 1981 reshuffle and was the secretary of the state of the environment
challenged Thatcher about the scale of unemployment and believed that efforts should be made to intervene in the economy in order to relive the worst-affected areas
why would Heseltine’s actions of unemployment after the 1981 have troubled Thatcher?
he developed strategies such as Enterprise Zones and Development Corporations in unemployment black spots
these policies resembled traditional corporatism rather than free-market thinking Thatcher wanted to promote
why did Heseltine disagree with Thatcher’s ‘presidential’ style?
believed it was unhealthy and instead the cabinet should play an important role in the creation of government policy
what was the Westland Affair?
Thatcher and Heseltine disagreed over the future of Westland Helicopters, an important British defence manufacturer
Heseltine resigned in outrage after a US company bought Westland
what does the Westland Affair reveal about Thatcher’s ideology?
demonstrated how uncompromising she was in her ideology and style of government
willing to jeopardise personal relationships which even resulted in resignations
why was the Poll Tax so unpopular?
most controversial policy as it introduced a flat-rate tax, regardless of income
what was the public response to the Poll Tax?
widespread anger and large-scale protests
1990: All Britain Anti-Poll Tax Federation organised a mass demonstration in Trafalgar Square, attended by 200,000 protesters
- turned into a riot
what impact did the Poll Tax have on taxpayers, the press, pensioners, and he police?
increased tax bills which people refused to pay, leaving the government with a growing crisis
bad publicity - newspapers covered stories of pensioners who couldn’t afford the charge and were jailed
police conceded it would be impossible to arrest all non-payers, demonstrating the fact the tax couldn’t be enforced
how did Thatcher’s uncompromising style become a weakness rather than a strength?
Poll Tax - being uncompromising damaged the reputation of the party as the policy remained unchanged
the only way to ditch the Poll Tax was to remove Thatcher
what reasons were there for Thatcher’s unpopularity by 1990?
Poll Tax
high interest rates
water privatisation
party divisions
how was Thatcher personally divided on the question of Europe?
committed to opening the free market across Europe but also resented interference as she feared European law world force Brain to accept ‘socialist’ policies
how was Thatcher finally ousted as a leader?
extremely unpopular by late 1990, making her position more vulnerable
Heseltine took the opportunity to challenge her for leadership and after the first round of voting she realised she’d lost support and so withdrew
what does Major’s victory reveal about the general feeling within the party about Thatcher compared to Thatcherism?
Conservatives wanted to continue similar policies
what they rejected was Thatcher herself and her ‘presidential’, uncompromising style
why did Major urgently rethink the Poll Tax?
it was so unpopular and had been a key factor in Thatcher’s decline
why did Major bring back Heseltine into the cabinet?
appointed him to design a replacement for the poll tax
the new tax was relatively uncontroversial and much less unpopular
What did Major’s government privatise?
Electricity companies, British Rail (1992)
what consensus did Thatcher make surrounding privatisation?
created a new consensus that the state had no role in running telecom businesses, car plants, mines, airways, or steel mills
what were ‘natural monopolies’ and how did they show the limits of the privatisation consensus?
‘natural monopolies’ included railways, water, gas, and electricity
all things the public opposed the privatisation of
what problems were there with Major’s privatisation programme?
did not lead to rolling back state spending in all cases as later privatisations were accompanied by long-term government subsidies
what approach did Major take to economic policy?
his main priorities were growth and low inflation
used free-market mechanisms rather than returning to Keynesianism or corporatism
greatly in line with Thatcherite ideologies
what was Major’s approach to the NHS?
continued commitment o state-provided healthcare
implemented the National Health Service and Community Care Act
- established internal market in the NHS to improve efficiency
what were PFIs?
Private Finance Initiative
built on the principle the state should fund but not provide public services
established a system whereby private companies would build, manage, and maintain schools and hospitals in return for payment from the government
competition to win PFI deals was fierce
why were politicians so worried about rave culture?
associated with drugs such as LSD, speed, and ecstasy
politicians responded with the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act (1994)
- gave police the power to target ‘raves’
why did Major’s ‘Back to Basics’ campaign fail so badly?
series of Conservative scandals indicated that Conservative MPs weren’t as committed to ‘traditional family valued’ as Major’s speech implied they should be
satirical comedians aimed to heighten the government’s embarrassment
how did Major attempt a different style of government?
radically different to Thatcher in the sense that she was unwilling to compromise but Major tried to work with the different wings of his party and seek compromises
how far were the problems of Major’s government caused by the legacy of Thatcher?
Major forced to deal with problems caused by Thatcher
- problems of privatisation
- long-term unemployment
- low public-sector pay
why was Major perhaps unlucky to have enemies other than the Tory party itself?
Major lacked a clear enemy and a plausible scapegoat and, other than the poll tax, his party wouldn’t allow him to acknowledge Thatcher’s mistakes
How many elections did Labour lose between 1979-92?
4 successive defeats
what 3 factors led to the transformation of the Labour Party in the 80s and 90s?
New Left, the moderate wing of the Labour Party, and the legacy of the Social Democratic Party all played a party in the creation of ‘New Labour’
why was the 1983 manifesto called the ‘longest suicide note in history’?
radical left-wing manifesto was the reason for one of Labour’s worst defeats
included highly unpopular proposals, such as unilateral nuclear disarmament
who led Labour in the move away from the left after the 1983 defeat?
Neil Kinnock initiated a campaign to expel members of Militant Tendency from the party
why was Militant Tendency a target for Labour?
their 1989 policy review ditched many of the policies they’d adopted in the early 80s
why did Kinnock question the commitment to nationalisation but retained faith in Keynesianism and the welfare state?
questioned nationalisation due to early privatisations and sales of council houses
retained faith in Keynesianism and welfare state in order to increase levels of employment
what key reform did John Smith bring in?
system of one member one vote, en ding he trade union ‘block vote’
partly in response to criticisms that Labour was too close to the unions
why was scrapping Clause IV such a turning point for the Labour Party?
it was the part of the party’s constitution that had justified nationalisation
who was ‘Mondeo Man’ and why was he important to New Labour?
a typical working-class Conservative voter
Blair wanted to attract their support
how did New Labour’s modernisation agenda show the influence of Thatcher?
Blair tried to win the support of working-class Conservative voters by offering better public services, but without raising taxes or reversing Thatcher’s privatisation
commitment to low taxes and privatisation clearly displays Thatcherism
who was Peter Mandleson?
Blair’s close ally and mentor
helped to present Labour as modern and appealing to the middle classes
why was getting the support of Rupert Murdoch so important to New Labour?
He was the owner of the ‘Sun’, ‘News of the World’, ‘The Times’, and ‘The Sunday Times’
getting his support helped to get Blair’s message across
what was Blair’s ‘Third Way’?
an approach that sat between extreme free market capitalism and the Old Labour Left
included some Thatcherite elements as well as policies with other origins
what were Blair’s key Thatcherite policies?
commitment to free markets rather than Keynesianism or corporatism
a rejection of nationalisation
continued use of PFI and internal markets in the public sector
continued welfare reform to tackle ‘dependency culture’
continued emphasis on tackling crime through police action and longer sentences
which policies showed that New Labour weren’t totally Thatcherite?
greater protection of civil liberties
limiting the state’s right to keep secrets
greater protection of minority rights - introduced legislation to secure the rights of women, black and Asian people, and LGBT people
greater spending on health, education, and infrastructure
acceptance of greater union rights and workers’ rights
why could New Labour under Blair be seen as more of a return to the moderate Labour Party of the pre-Thatcher years?
traditionally Labour had always been led by moderates
1980-83 saw Labour dominated by left-wing leadership
who formed the SDP and why?
1981: right-wing Labour MPs left the Labour Party in protest of Foot’s left-wing policies
Roy Jenkins, Shirley Williams, Bill Rodgers, and David Owen
rejected radical extremes of Labour and Thatcherism
when was the SDP-Liberal Alliance formed?
1981
like the SDP, Liberals opposed to the extreme politics of the two main parties
what were the key policies of the SDP and Liberals?
radical constitutional reform, including introduction of proportional representation and a bill of rights
supported co-ownership rather than privatisation or nationalisation
most pro-European of the major parties
when dd the SDP-Liberal Alliance become the Liberal Democrats?
1987 the Alliance failed to make a major electoral breakthrough
1988 a merge created the Social and Liberal Democrats
known as Liberal Democrats by 1997
how did the Alliance manifestos show the influence of Thatcherism?
1983 - commitment to corporatism and a mixed economy
this changed in 1987 - in favour of privatisation and rejected corporatism
why did David Owen remain the head of a smaller SDP instead of joining the Liberal Democrats?
wanted to protect the state provision of healthcare and education
also wanted to reform the welfare system so that targeted benefits helped the poorest, without creating a dependency culture
why was David Owen criticised?
his similarity to Thatcher by 1988 was mocked
what other influences apart from Thatcherism may have been reflected in Owen’s policies?
he had been part of the Callaghan Labour government that had introduced monetarism
influenced by European economics which combined the state and the market
what link is there between former SDP advocators, Major’s government, and New Labour?
many former members of the SDP became policy advisors to Major, which others joined New Labour
- played an important role in devising policies that recognised need to for the state to provide certain forms of welfare within a free market
how far does New labour’s constitutional stance reflect the impact of Liberalism?
Liberals had been consistent advocated of constitutional reform, and their arguments influenced the direction of New Labour
traditionally the Labour Party hadn’t been in favour of a bill of rights, freedom of information, or voting reform
how far does consensus over the significance of the market economy constitute consensus over Thatcherism?
the major political parties all embraced the market economy by 1997
extent of Thatcher’s influence is disputed
- right-wing members of Labour embraced monetarism before Thatcher was elected
- SDP also played a role in developing free-market policies
what was Charter 88?
a British pressure group that advocated constitutional and electoral reform
New Left’s emphasis on the rights of minorities and the impact of activist groups shifted the political consensus towards greater respect for minority rights
