The New Economic Policy Flashcards
What were some of the reasons Lenin introduced the NEP?
To retain political power
To revive the economy
To build socialism
How could the NEP help Lenin retain political power?
Described NEP as an economic retreat which was designed to stop a political defeat (using economic compromises).
Why did Lenin want the NEP to revive the economy?
Needed a policy that would stimulate grain production in order to end the famine.
How could the NEP help Lenin build Socialism?
Hoped the NEP would generate wealth that could be used to industrialise and modernise the Soviet economy.
How did the NEP end War Communism?
Created a mixed economy
What is a mixed economy?
Economy in which the state and private enterprise both play a significant role
How was a mixed economy created to end War Communism?
Farming left to free market
Small factories and workshops were denationalised and allowed to trade freely
Large factories and industries remained nationalised
Money was reintroduced
What could happen now that farming was left to the free market?
Peasants could buy, sell and produce freely.
Grain requisitioning ended and replaced with tax in kind.
What is tax in kind?
Tax in which producers pay the government a proportion of what they make, rather than paying in money.
Why was the NEP not wholly popular within the Party?
It was a compromise with Capitalism
What did the NEP lead to?
Political and economic stability
What did the NEP not lead to?
Rapid industrial growth
What sections did the NEP divide the Communist Party into?
Right-wing
Left wing
Centre
What sections of the Communist Party supported the NEP?
Right-wing
Centre
What section of the Communist Party opposed the NEP?
Left-wing
Why did the right-wing of the Communist Party support the NEP?
Argued that it was a form of state capitalism, and a necessary transitional stagr
Why did the left-wing of the Communist Party oppose the NEP?
Argued that it was allowing the problems of capitalism to re-emerge
Why did the centre of the Communist Party support the NEP?
Argued that it was helping rebuild the economy
How did the NEP impact farming?
Ending grain requisition=extremely popular among peasants
Free trade=encouraged peasants to grow more food
Therefore, famine ended and farming revived
How did the NEP impact industry?
Led to industrial growth
Lenin authorised major electrification campaign=revived industry which effectively was destroyed by Civil War
However, industrial recovery was slow.
What was the scissors crisis?
name for an incident in early Soviet history caused by NEP
How did the NEP lead to the ‘scissors crisis’?
Agriculture recovered quickly; industry much more slowly.
Imbalance led to a fall in price of food and rise in price of industrial goods
Gap was opened between farmers’ incomes and industrial prices.
Why did Trotsky nickname the crisis, the ‘scissors crisis’?
Lines on the graph illustrating the problem looked like the blades of a pair of scissors
What did the government have to do as a result of the ‘scissors crisis’?
Forced to step in and impose price cuts on industrial goods
How did the NEP lead to the re-emergence of inequality?
Large farms prospered, whereas small farms did less well.
‘NEPmen’ grew rich
Who were ‘NEPmen’?
Traders who travelled the country selling highly desirable goods
What did Communists view NEPmen as?
Parasites
Why did Communists view NEPmen as parasites?
They made money without producing anything.
From time to time, what were the NEPmen arrested by the Cheka for?
Profiteering
What is profiteering?
Making money through illegal trade
How did the NEP lead to corruption?
Gambling, prostitution and drug dealing all took place under it
What was prostitution a result of ?
Wider social and economic problems
What did prostitution lead to in the 1920s?
Widespread poverty among women
How did the NEP provide political stability?
Peasants in favour of abolishing grain requisitioning
Peasants began supporting regime
Why was political stability a deliberate part of Lenin’s NEP?
Argued Communist government was based on an alliance, or ‘smychka’, between workers and peasants, which was made possible by NEP.
