Wilson as leader: 1964-70 Flashcards
What was the key to Wilson’s image?
He was a moderniser and an everyman
What about the conservatives made Wilson’s image even more effective?
Their leader, Alec Douglas-Home was an aristocrat, so Wilson appealed to the everyman
How did Wilson’s view on science help him win?
He spoke confidently about Britain catching up with the “White Heat” of technological and scientific change
I) Who was Hume’s replacement?
II) What was he like?
I) Edward Heath
II) Awkward and Dull
What was the Labour Majority in 1964?
4 Seats
I) When did Labour call another election under Wilson?
II) What was the result?
I) 1966
II) The majority increased to 98
I) Did Wilson support Gaitskell or Bevan?
II) What shows this?
I) Bevan
II) He resigned over prescription charges when Bevan did
What was Wilson’s view on CND?
He supported having Nuclear Weapons
What was Wilson’s view on the Unions?
He thought that they had exceeded their power, and he tried (unsuccessfully) to reform them
What was Wilson’s view on his own cabinet?
He was an anxious leader, especially because there were many heavyweight politicians in his cabinate
Who were some of the key cabinet member’s Wilson was anxious of?
Gaistskell, Jenkins and George Brown
What is a key example of Wilson’s anxiety?
“The Kitchen Cabinet” of advisors who were not cabinet members nor civil servants
What were two key disadvantages of “The Kitchen Cabinet”?
These advisors made him more anxious of the rest of the party, and Wilson was unapproachable
What was the biggest problem in Wilson’s government?
The Economy
I) What was a key issue with Labour’s desire to technologically modernise?
II) What are two key examples of this?
I) Most of the cabinet were inexperienced
II) Jenkins as aviation minister and Cousins as Technology minister
How much of a government deficit did Wilson inherit?
£800 Million
What did Wilson not want to devalue the pound? (2)
I) Atlee had already done so in 1949; did not want a reputation as the party of devaluation
II) It makes England look weak on the world stage
What are the positives of Devaluation?
I) Exports become cheaper
II) Imports become more expensive; encourages buying British which can bolster the economy
I) What did Wilson do to try and break out of Stop-Go?
II) Who did Wilson place in charge?
I) Set up the DEA
II) George Brown
Why was George Brown a controversial figure?
He was inconsistent, and there were rumours that he was an alcoholic
What were the two main issues the treasury clashed with the DEA on?
I) They did not like a new upstart department having power over them
II) Chancellor Jim Callaghan did not like Brown’s level of influence in this area
What did Wilson do to try and Combat the issues between the DEA and the Treasury?
He moved Brown to the Foreign Office in 1966
Why did Wilson need to give Brown a prominent position in government?
He was popular in the party and very experienced. The DEA was arguably the wrong role
When was the DEA shut down?
1967
What did Wilson set up to keep wages and prices at a reasonable level?
The Prices and Incomes board
What did the call for wage restraint lead to? (2)
I) 1966 Seamen strike
II) Cousins resigns over “increased pressure” on the unions
What would be an internal issue for Wilson following the call for wage restrain?
He became unpopular with the left of his party
When was the Devaluation crisis?
1967
What effected British Oil Prices?
The war in the Middle East
I) What was the problem with exports in 1967?
II) What did this lead to?
I) The dock strike of August 1967
II) Another balance of payments crisis and the eventual devaluation of the pound
How much did Wilson devalue the pound against the dollar?
14%
What, aside from devaluation, did labour do in 1967 which they did not want to do?
Use deflationary tactics
What was the effect of the 1967 EEC application?
It was rejected
What was Jenkins’ major success as chancellor?
He achieved a balance of payments surplus in 1969
What was inflation at in 1969-70?
12% (very high)
When was Roy Jenkins appointed as home secretary?
December 1965
What was Jenkins predominant political stance?
liberal
In the early 60s, what percentage of people polled had a positive view of the unions?
60%
What appointment shows Wilson’s support of, and closeness to, the unions?
Frank Cousins as Minister of Technology
I) What were the “Wildcat” strikes?
II) Who carried these out?
III) When?
I) Unofficial strikes
II) The seamen and dockers
III) 1966-67
What did the Wildcat strikes show?
The union bosses were loosing their grip to an extent
What was Wilson’s view on the unions following these strikes?
That there should still be unions but that they should be more regulated?
What did Wilson’s view that the Unions needed greater regualtion lead to?
In Place Of Strife
I) Who published the plans for In Place Of Strife
II) When was it published?
I) Barbara Castle
II) January 1969
What was Castle’s view on the Unions?
The same as Wilson; she supported them, but thought the unofficial strikes needed dealing with
What did the In Place of Strife document stipulate? (4)
I) A 28 day “Cooling off” period
II) The proposal of Strike Ballots
III) The proposal that government could impose a settlement where two Trade Unions were in dispute with each other (demarcation disputes)
IV) The creation of an industrial relations court to prosecute those who break the laws
What was the general public opinion on In Place Of Strife?
They were in support
Give one other key labour politician (not Wilson or castle) who supported In Place of Strife?
Roy Jenkins (he was Chancellor by this point)
Who was the major opposition against In Place of Strife outside the Labour party?
Jack Jones, a powerful union boss (secretary for Transport and General Workers Union)
I) How many labour MP’s opposed In Place of Strife?
II) Who was the leader of this movement?
I) 50
II) Jim Callaghan
Why was Wilson a “centrist” leader?
He was a middle ground between Bevan and Gaitskell by the time of both of their death. This united the party at the start of his Term
What key figures did Wilson fear leadership challenges from?
Brown, Callaghan and Jenkins
Who did Wilson defeat for Party Leadership after Gaitskell stepped down?
George Brown. He took this very badly
Aside from his leadership defeat, what else frustrated Brown?
He was passed over for the role of Foreign Secretary in 1964
How did Wilson try to mitigate Brown’s ability to usurp him?
Kept a file of his embarrassing incidents
I) What was Wilson’s primary reason for distrusting Jenkins?
II) Why were Jenkins liberal reforms a point of conflict between him and Wilson
I) He was a Gaistkellite
II) Wilson was more focused on the economy and did not see the need to focus so much on these reforms. He was not strongly against them, however
What political idea did Wilson see as a leadership ploy from Jenkins?
Jenkins desire to devalue the pound. Wilson though this was a plan to embarrass him on the world stage, thus forcing his resignation
Who was Callaghan’s major conflict with in the Party under Wilson?
Roy Jenkins
What was Callaghans stance on: I) The EEC II) Liberalising reforms III) Devaluation IV) Union Reform
I) Against
II) Against
III) Against
IV) Against, and even led the opposition
What side of the Party were Callaghan, Jenkins and Brown on?
The Right
What side is Wilson’s major criticism coming from?
The Left. They felt he was stepping away from socialism
When did Ireland become 2 countries?
1922
I) When do tensions rise in Northern Ireland Under wilson?
II) What displayed this?
I) 1968
II) Loyalists attacked civil rights marches in 1968
What did the Civil Rights marches claim after the 1968 attacks?
The RUC (the police) had failed to protect them and evidenced this as discrimination
What action in 1969 shows further tension
The Loyalist Apprentice Boys annual march in Derry was attacked by nationalists in the Catholic Bogside area
What was the fallout of the 1969 attacks?
2 days of rioting and the RUC failing to regain control. Videos emerged of the RUC beating Catholic protestors
I) What did the Northern Irish parliament say they would do in response to the riots?
II) What was the fallout of this?
I) Tackle housing and electoral boundaries
II) The Loyalists claimed that this was the government giving in to Catholic violence, and they rioted
What did the Loyalist rioting lead Wilson to do in 1969?
Send in the British Army to restore calm
Were the nationalists for or against British rule?
Against
What were two events in the 50s which made people question the establishment?
The Suez Crisis and the Profumo affair
Did Wilson want to push for social change upon his 1964 election win?
No, he was more focused on the economy and scientific change
What was a free vote and why was it important?
The party members were allowed to vote from their conscience, not the party line. This led to greater social change
How did much of the liberalising legislation begin?
As private members bills. They were put forward by backbench MP’s
Why was Jenkins still instrumental in the success of these private members bills?
As a leading politician he made sure there was enough time to discuss the issues
What case was especially influential in the campaign against capitol punishment?
The Ruth Ellis case 1955
When did the government reduce the number of offences carrying the death penalty?
Homicide Act 1957
Which Labour MP campaigned for the abolition of hanging for 5 years?
Sydney Silverman
I) When did the 5 year trial period for the abolition of hanging begin?
II) When was hanging abolished completely?
I) 1965
II) 1969
When did Jenkins end corporal punishment in prisons
1967
What change did Jenkins make to the jury system?
Made it majority verdict (10-2 instead of unanimous)
When was the divorce reform act passed?
1969
What did the divorce rate go up to?
10 in 1000 from 2 in 1000
What, other than the act, is argued to have effected divorce rates?
Growing independence for women
How many illegal abortions happened per year before 1967?
100,000-200,000
How many women died from abortions between 1958-60?
83
Who campaigned for abortion reform?
The Abortion Law Reform association
I) Which MP introduced a Private Members bill to reform the law?
II) What party was he part of?
I) David Steel
II) Liberal
When was the abortion act passed?
1967
What did the number of abortions per number of live births increase to by 1975?
from 4 to 17.6
When was Homsexual relations decrimanalised?
1967
Who pushed for the comprehensive school system?
Tony Crosland
I) When was the Circular 10/65 issued?
II) What did it stipulate
I) 1965
II) It was a request for the LEA’s to convert to the tripartite system, though it was not legally binding
What change in 1966 made the Circular 10/65 more popular?
Crossland made funding for more school buildings contingent on adherence to the 10/65
What fraction of students were educated in the Comprehensive system by 1970?
1/3rd
What did Wilson claim the comprehensive system would promote?
Grammar school education for everyone
I) What was the Robbins Committee?
II) When was it set up?
I) A committee set up to evaluate the higher education system
II) 1961
What did the Robbins Committee find?
That higher education was neglecting science and technology in favour of the arts and humanities. This was following the belief that England’s higher education as falling behind
I) What new institutions did Wilson set up
II) How were they different from universities?
I) Polytechnics
II) focus on teaching instead of teaching + research
How many colleges of advanced technology became universities under Wilson?
9
How many polytechnics and universities were there by 1968
30 polytechnics
56 universities
Who helped make the Open University a reality?
Jennie Lee (Minister of the Arts
I) When was the Open II) University officially open?
When did courses start?
I) 1969
II) 1971
What was the open universitie’s major goal?
Offer higher education to those who may not have been able to access it previously
How many open university students were there by 1980?
70,000
I) What event in 1968 showed the threat of the USSR?
II) What did this re-inforce to Wilson?
I) The Prauge Spring
II) How important the atlantic alliance with the USA was, with a focus on protecting the west of Europe
When did the US enter Vietnam?
1964
Which president called for support from overseas?
President Johnson
Who in the commonwealth sent troops?
Australia
What was Wilson’s compromise on the Vietman War?
He endorsed it but did not send troops
Why was Vietnam an economic conflict in England?
Sending troops was expensive, but the UK needed US funding
What was the political dilema around the Vietnam war?
Wilson wanted to keep the USA happy but the war was hugely unpopular in the UK
Why was the “moral support” a total failure
The labour left were annoyed that Wilson endorsed the war, whereas the USA were unhappy with the lack of commitment
I) Who was the major opponent to the EEC?
II) Why?
I) Gaitskell
II) He was worried about Europe would become “the united states of Europe”
Why were the left of labour like Castle and Benn against the EEC?
They viewed it as a capitalist club
Which key labour members supported the EEC?
Brown and Jenkins
Were the unions for or against the EEC?
Against
What was Callaghan’s approach to the EEC?
He did not like it, mainly due to his links with the unions
When was the second EEC application authorised?
October 1966
Why did the ‘66 EEC application seem seem doomed from the start
Labour seemed half-hearted in their application, and De Gaule had not seemed to change his mind
When was the second EEC application get denied?
1967
Why was decolonisation a key part of Wilson’s foreign policy?
He believed in decolonisation, and Macmillan had pledged it would happen
What was the main goal of Minister for defence Denis Healey?
Bring the defence budget under £2 Billion
What policy did Healey plan to use to reduce defence spending?
“East of Suez”
What commitment did Wilson make in 1967 regarding defence?
Updating the Polaris missle system
What cuts led to the speeding up of “east of suez”
Jenkins 1968 spending cuts
What was the main difficulty in regards to decolonisation?
Rhodesia
What was the main issue in Rhodesia?
The white minority regime
How many parts of Rhodesia split into in 1963?
3
How many parts of Rhodesia become independent in 1964?
2
