UK 1: Conservative Governments Flashcards
What were the reasons for the conservative governments political dominance?
- Credited with bringing the age of affluence (economic boom)
- Internal Labour divisions due to arguments over Clause IV (armaments) and Bevanites vs. Gaitskellites 1951
- New first-past-the-post electoral system meant the conservative party won the most seats
- Labour only lost narrowly, and gained more than previous elections with 14 million
Describe the premiership of Winston Churchill and his impact on domestic policy.
- Describe the premiership of Winston Churchill and his impact on domestic policy.
- Ill man with speech impairment from a stroke in 1953
- Labour politicians thought Churchill was dull and that the Conservatives would soon fall out of power (didn’t for 13 years)
- He was inactive in domestic policy and constantly engaged in foreign affairs, he believed his key priority was ensuring no new conflict would break out (e.g. nuclear war)
- Believed he was above party politics, was part of Liberals before Tories in 1904, so during his time he tried to get liberals to join his cabinet and non-Conservative peers to oversee ministries
- Anthony Eden usually stood in for him along with Rab Butler (Chancellor of Exchequer) and Harold Macmillan
- Churchill thought Butler would work well with TU and Parliament (not as critical of post war consensus)
- Relations between the three were tense
What was the premiership of Anthony Eden like?
- Lacked interest in domestic affairs and awareness of economic issues
- Key humiliation of Britain (Suez Crisis 1951) was due to him - marked the end of Britain’s imperial power → rebellion of 40 conservatives including Edward Heath and pressure from US exposed their financial weakness
- Accused of lying to the HoC by Labour politicians and ruined reputation
- He was indecisive and hesitant, also criticised for being too conciliatory towards trade unions
- Weakness in authority when trying to move Macmillan to Foreign Office to Treasury but Macmillan delayed it when he didn’t want to
- Resigned in 1957 over ‘ill health’
How was Harold Macmillan as a political leader?
- Macmillan defeated Butler due to popularity difference - ‘SuperMac’ image
- Reputation of Butler declined from cutting and then raising taxes before 1955 election
- Seen as the safe choice for a leader, and disagreed with the way the Great Depression was handled (employment, appeasement) whereas Butler was heavily linked with ‘appeasement’ (policy of making concessions in order to avoid conflict; 1930s British government aimed to prevent a war with Nazi Germany with this method)
- Economic prosperity was attributed to him → gained votes
- Macmillan in full control of affairs with Butler as Home Secretary
- Conservative majority increased to 100 seats after he called election in 1959
- Great Depression means conservatives wanted to accept government intervention and planning e.g. NHS
- Accepted the ‘post-war consensus’
How was Alec Douglas Home as a political leader?
Foreign secretary under Macmillan and Heath, leader of Tory party in 63, and gave up peerage to sit in HoC rather than HoL
Introduced elections for Conservative leadership as formal system didn’t exist before 65.
What was conservative domestic policy at this time?
- Housing - promised to build 300,000 houses a year (Macmillan oversaw this)
- Education - continued tripartite system developed after Butler Act 1944 (grammar, public and technical) with 11+ test for primary school children. Whilst Churchill’s admin couldn’t afford to create technical schools, Eden tried for a bit
- Social Reforms - Macmillan’s Clean Air Act 1956 (to clear smog); Housing and Factory Act to improve living and working conditions, Butler was socially progressive and credited with reforms to the legality of homosexuality (Wolfden Commission 1957 suggested), the death penalty (Homocide Act 1957), abortion and censorship of media
How did internal divisions affect the labour party during this period?
Aneurin Bevan (1897-1960) - minister of health in Attlee government and architect of NHS, hero to Labour left and left in 1951 to protest against introduction of prescription charges. Originally opposed Britain developing nuclear weapons then announced his opposition fo unilateral disarmament in 1957 but other left wingers joined CND
Hugh Gaitskell (1906-63) - Chancellor of Exchequer from 1950 to 1951 who introduced the prescription charges. On the right of labour and party leader in 1955. A confident and charismatic campaigner, put forward the idea of abolishing Clause IV (committing the party to nationalisation) → met with opposition
Left wanted Labour to be more socialist, slowly more opposition from TU grew e.g. Frank Cousins, who became the leader of TGWU 1956 (he opposed Gaitskell’s leadership)
Lost 1960 vote and overturned it a year later. Cultural shifts in the country made public more critical of Conservative government by 1960s, death of Gaitskell meant Harold Wilson took over.
What were the main reasons for the conservatives’ fall from power?
- Super Mac image faded from 1962 (classic explanation of ups and downs was “events dear boy, events” → weakened grip on government which led to resignation as PM in October 63
- Application to EEC (rejected in 1963) as a result of economic concerns
- Night of Long Knives - Macmillan lost his touch and reshuffled a third of his cabinet → weakened his government
- Seemed out of date as Edwardian gentleman
- Spy scandals of George Blake as Soviet double agent in 1961, 1962 John Vassall was blackmailed on the basis of homosexuality to inform Soviet Union
- Profumo Affair in 1963 - John Profumo lied about his actions and the media kept it in headlines for weeks ⇒ short lived but the conservatives were still seen as out of date
- Resigned in 63 after abdominal operation and left no successor ⇒ power struggle = compromise candidate Lord Home
