A Level history: Thatcher

Conviction politics

The belief that politics should be down to the individual ideas of each politician, not compromise/consensus

Thought private companies were more efficient than government agencies as they had to make a profit whereas the government could afford to be wasteful

What did Thatcher think of private vs government agencies?

Welfare, unions, state intervention

3 things that Thatcher opposed

Rule of Law

Believing in the utmost importance of British law in politics to defend individual rights

Nationalism

Believing in the values of Britishness

Monetarism

Spending cuts; belief that too much money in the economy led to inflation (inflation caused pay demands and low productivity)

Geoffrey Howe (Chancellor) and Sir Keith Joseph (headed Dept. of Industry)

Which dries were given important roles during the beginning of Thatcher's premiership?

£2 billion

How much did government spending drop by 1980-81?

1981

When was there a particularly controversial budget with higher taxes and cuts to welfare?

364

How many ministers wrote a letter protesting the controversial 1981 budget?

Increased interest rates; public spending cuts (£11 bil to £9 bil); cuts in health, benefits, education; raised VAT (8% to 15%); lowered direct taxation (standard rate of income tax - 33 to 30%, top rate for high earners 83% to 60%)

What controversial measures were implemented in the 1981 budget?

1982

When was monetarism replaced by supply side economics?

Wanted to reduce spending on nationalised industries, and so allowed some industries to decline

What did the government do to nationalised industries 1979-82?

Widespread job losses as companies had to let go of workers in order to be profitable

What impact did government cuts to aid given to struggling nationalised industries have on unemployment?

What are the 2 steps of privatisation?

Industries made profitable, then sold to private shareholders

Where a larger proportion of society owns shares and feels the benefits of the free market

Popular Capitalism

1986- 'Tell Sid'

What was the name of the popular advertising campaign which accompanied the privatisation of British Gas?

How much did the British Gas campaign brought?

4.6 mill bought shares in the company

government tended to sell shares below the market rate, purchasers would see the value of their investment increase quickly.

Why was buying shares popular?

Before 1983 what industries had all been sold off?

British Aerospace, British Sugar and British Petroleum

7%

1979- how many owned shares?

25%

1990- how many owned shares?

made the trading of stocks and shares easier in an attempt to attract foreign investment.

Financial Services Act 1986

17th October 1987 - due to Lawson policies became known as Black Monday, wiped £50 million off the value of shares.

Stock market crash

Housing Act1980 - those who live in a council house for 3+ years=33% discount from the market rate

More than 20+= 50% discount

Housing Act

1988 - banned local authorities from spending the money earned from the sale of council houses on new building projects

Second Housing Act

25% (7% in 1979)

What percentage of the population owned shares in 1990?

Sold them off

What did Thatcher do to the council houses?

1984

When did the government shut down 20 loss-making mines?

1986

When was the London stock exchange deregulated?

1986

When did Nigel Lawson begin to deregulate London under the 'Lawson Boom'?

1985

When did Lawson abandon monitoring the money supply?

1987

When was there a Stock Market Crash worldwide?

£50 million

How much was lost in share value after the 1987 Stock Market Crash?

It fell and stayed relatively low but was still higher than European inflation

What impact did Thatcher's economic policies have on inflation?

Improved productivity compared to the 1970s, but not compared to other countries such as France, Germany, Japan, and USA

What impact did Thatcher's economic policies have on productivity?

Banned secondary picketing (people in firms who aren't directly involved in the dispute picketing)

What did the 1980 Employment Act do?

Employers only had to agree to a closed shop (where everyone is a member of a specific union) if all workers were in favour of it

What did the 1982 Employment Act do?

'Operation Swamp'

What was the codename for increased police stop and search powers in 1981?

Police would mainly 'stop and search' black youths in an attempt to stop muggings

Racial issue with 'Operation Swamp'

Riots in Brixton

What did 'Operation Swamp' and 'stop and search' powers lead to?

Police could search cars + properties

What did the 1984 Police and Criminal Evidence Act mean?

Police could arrest people involved in demonstrations/pickets, or for 'disorderly conduct' (insulting language)

What did the 1986 Public Orders Act mean?

Shorter prison sentences but tougher conditions for young offenders

What did the 1982/88 Criminal Justice Acts mean?

36%

How much was the law and order budget increased by? (%)

1979

When did the British government allow US missiles to be stationed on British territory?

Greenham Women's Peace Camp

What anti-nuclear weapons organisation was set up on the outskirts of a military base?

1980

When did the British government buy Trident (nuclear weapons) from the USA?

£7.5 billion

How much did Trident cost per year for the first 15 years?

1982

When did Thatcher give permission for an expensive invasion of the Falklands Islands in a war against Argentina?

1986

When did Thatcher give permission for US bombers in Britain to bomb Libya after a Libyan terrorist set off a bomb on a British plane?

20%

How much did defence spending increase by (%) in the years 1979-86?

1986

In what year did Thatcher start to reduce defence spending?

7%

How much did defence spending fall by in the years 1979-89?

Provide the government with secret information through interception

What did GCHQ do?

1984

When were GCHQ workers banned from joining a union?

Unions seen as linked to Communism, and thus were a threat to national security

Why were GCHQ workers banned from joining a union?

The "enemy from within"

How did Thatcher describe unions?

1985

When did Duncan Campbell uncover evidence about the Zircon Affair?

A spy satellite

What was 'Zircon'?

Put pressure on BBC not to show his documentary, raided the BBC offices to confiscate his research, and got a court order banning him from speaking about it

In what 3 ways did the government try and stop Duncan Campbell talking about 'Zircon'?

1985

When was the book 'Spycatcher' banned in England and Wales?

'Spycatcher' (memoirs of a former MI5 officer)

Which book was banned in England and Wales in 1985 due to national security

Charter 88

Which pressure group was formed in 1988 to campaign for protection of civil liberties and freedom of speech in Britain?

Council house tenants who had lived in their homes for more than 3 years could buy their houses at a discounted price

What did the 1980 Housing Act do?

Over 5 million

How many state owned homes were sold to private tenants in the years 1980-97?

Banned local authorities spending money earned from the sale of council houses on other building projects

What did the 1988 Housing Act do?

Thought it was inefficient

Why didn't Thatcher like the civil service?

'Next Steps'

Which report led to civil service departments being forced to set targets and publish progress reports

25%

What percentage of a reduction in civil servants had there been by 1989?

Raising rates (local taxes)

How did local governments respond to cuts in funding?

'Targets and penalties' policy

Policy that implemented spending targets for local governments and gave reduced funding to those who exceeded it

Government could put a cap on local taxation

What did the 1984 Rates Bill mean?

Local governments had to buy into services rather than being directly provided them

What did the 1988 Local Governments Act mean?

1984

When did Liverpool Council set an illegal rate to protest rate capping?

The Labour councils weren't united, the government was willing to compromise, and the right-wing press swayed public opinion away from the 'Loony Left'

3 reasons why the challenge to rate capping fell apart

Subsidised travel on the Underground, gave financial aid to LGBTQ/women's/ethnic minority groups, set up cafes to give cheaper food to poor people

What 3 things did Labour introduce to the Greater London Council under "urban socialism" in 1981?

Abolished it

What did Thatcher do to the Greater London Council?

1988

When did the community charge (poll tax) replace rates?

All adults pay the same amount of tax on their property regardless of their property value

Poll tax (community charge)

£44 million

How much did the government provide to local governments in 1979?

£39 million

How much did the government provide to local governments in 1984?

Which council did Thatcher use the example of ?

Wandsworth in London, to promote greater efficiency through the 'contracting out of council services.

By 1985, staff numbers had fallen by one-third in Wandsworth.

1984 Liverpool Council, led by Derek Hatton, openly defied the government by setting an illegal rate.

Which labour local authorities organised a campaign against the rates bill and the rate capping?

plans to cap the rates of eighteen councils - sixteen Labour and two Conservative.

What did the government announce its plans on rate capping

Protests

What did the introduction of the poll tax lead to?

Money given to districts who would then buy services from local hospitals; forced each hospital to compete for funding

Which new system was introduced after the 1989 White Paper 'Working With Patients'?

35%

How much did government spending on the NHS increase by 1979-89?

National Curriculum and SATs

What 2 things were introduced to schools under Thatcher?

Means testing introduced on some benefits

What did the 1986 Social Security Act mean?

Reduce state pensions and increase private pensions

What did Thatcher want to do with pensions?

Presented the conflict as an attack on British honour

How did Thatcher encourage national unity through her 1982 speeches about the Falklands Islands?

The southeast prospered whilst Scotland and Wales were left behind

Why do some people argue that Scottish and Welsh nationalism grew under Thatcher?

Created a divide between those who could afford to buy and those who couldn't

How did the selling off of council houses create a divide in the working class?

Thatcher wanted to succeed where Heath had failed in 1974 + the 1978 winter of discontent turned public opinion away from the unions

2 long-term reasons for the 1984 conflict with the miners

Development of alternative energy sources to reduce the reliance on coal

Thatcher's ministers called for measures to restrict the unions, such as _________?

Ian MacGregor

Who did Thatcher appoint as Head of the National Coal Board?

20

How many coal pots did Ian MacGregor claim he wanted to close?

70

How many coal pits did Arthur Scargill say that Ian MacGregor ACTUALLY planned to close?

He didn't think he'd win

Why dud Arthur Scargill not hold a strike ballot before the 1984 strike?