With the UK elections nearly upon us, we take a look back at some of the Prime Ministers that have graced the halls of the House of Commons over the years, what their greatest political achievements were and how this has impacted directly on Ireland.
From the wartime leader Churchill to what is considered by many to be the greatest prime minster ever, Clement Attlee, the careers of these great Prime Ministers changed the course of political history in the UK.
The second Prime Minister in our series is the inimitable Margaret Thatcher, nicknamed the Iron Lady, leader of the Conservative party from 1975 to 1990 and the Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990.
Who was she?
Margaret Hilda Roberts was born on the 13th of October in 1925 in Grantham, Lincolnshire. The daughter of a grocer, Alfred Roberts, she lived with her family in a flat over one of the shops he owned. She became interested in politics at an early age; her father was involved in local politics and stood as an Independent candidate, even though he came from a Liberal family. He became Mayor of Grantham in 1945.
Her work ethic was immeasurable, even at school she took on a lot of extra-curricular activities. She was a firm believer in hard work, often citing the fact that she had a modest upbringing before she became a politician. Apparently, Thatcher even bought her own ironing board when she lived in Downing Street. She was honest about her beliefs, fearless in her presentation and was, as many of her Conservative peers attested, well-prepared. Her firm belief was “you may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” She was eager to present herself as the perfect Conservative and leader, many point to the fact that she was groomed for it over her life, even taking with the National Theatre’s voice coach.
Thatcher won a scholarship to study chemistry in Oxford University but by the time she graduated, she had become involved in student politics with an interest in law. She was formally adopted as a Conservative candidate in 1951 and stood for a seat in Dartford in both the 1950 and 1951 General Elections. By 1954, she had re-trained as a barrister, specializing in taxation and ran as a candidate for the party in Finchley, North London in 1959. Thatcher was their MP until 1992.
After a party one night in 1951, she met Denis Thatcher, a businessman, who she married and the pair had two children. Along with her parents, Denis funded a lot of Margaret’s election campaign, a tough one, in 1958.
The Conservative Party
At the time when Thatcher first became involved in politics in 1951, Winston Churchill, the great wartime leader was head of the Conservative party and Prime Minister. Following the war, the party moved to modernise itself, advocating for liberal trade regulations and less state involvement but the party was in flux. A union was forming across Europe and essentially, over time, the Empire came undone.
Three more party leaders succeeded Churchill before Edward Heath took control in 1965. With the loss of government in 1974 to a Labour-led coalition following the miner’s strike, Heath’s position at the head of the party was volatile. Thatcher made a play for leadership in 1975 and took it, to the surprise of many.
However, she had proved to be somewhat of a trailblazer in the Conservative party during the 60s and 70s. Outspoken and headstrong, when first enlisted she gained a lot of media attention, particularly due to her young age. Thatcher was confident in her beliefs and entirely committed to them, character traits which no doubt contributed to her taking the job as Secretary of State for Education and Science, a position she became infamous for; Thatcher abolished free milk for children from seven to eleven years, a policy which caused a huge outcry from the opposition. It earned her the title, "Margaret Thatcher, Milk Snatcher", certainly not as glamorous as "The Iron Lady".
With the fall of the Conservative Government and Heath’s exit, Thatcher became Leader of the Opposition. Labour were performing relatively well in opinion polls with an improvement in the economy but decided to wait to call a General Election until the following year. It proved to be their undoing; that winter, called the “Winter of Discontent”, featured a multitude of strikes and with the election taking place in 1979, the Conservatives won a 44-seat majority in the Commons.
Thatcher became the first female Prime Minister of Britain. She was more proud that she was the first Prime Minister with a science degree…
“Crime is crime is crime. It is not political, it is crime”
The issue of Ireland always raises its head as some point or another throughout a Prime Minister’s term and it certainly cast a dark shadow over Thatcher’s.
The situation in the North of Ireland had exploded over the 1970s leading to the infamous troubles. With casualties on both sides of the conflict, the IRA was at large with many imprisoned in the Maze. During 1980 and 1981, members of the republican movement went on hunger strike in order to receive treatment as political prisoners. Thatcher refused to back down claiming that “crime is crime is crime”. Bobby Sands, one of the main prisoners on strike, was nominated for election and won his seat from prison. Thatcher still refused to back down. 10 prisoners died over the course of the hunger strikes causing a surge in support for the republican movement in the North. Some rights were eventually restored but not to the same extent as previous to 1976.
Following the hunger strikes, Thatcher was the subject of an assassination attempt in 1983 in Brighton. The IRA planted a bomb at the Conservative Party conference. Despite five deaths, including the wife of a Cabinet Minister, Thatcher insisted the hotel open as normal and she went ahead with her speech.
Thatcher also furthered Anglo-Irish relations by signing, along with Garret FitzGerald, the Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985, which gave Ireland an advisory role in Northern Ireland without affecting its constitutional position. It was a huge development considering just a few years earlier she was incensed by Ireland’s request to the security council for a ceasefire in the Falklands, which would essentially leave the area in Argentinian control. You could say that she and Charlie Haughey didn’t exactly get on well. In fact, she didn’t trust him at all after the Falklands controversy, calling him a “romantic nationalist”.
Britain in the 80s
Not much improved in the early Thatcher era in relation to the economy, unemployment soared and strikes continued, despite her attempts to introduce economic liberalism by privatising state-owned industries, lowering taxes and reducing social expenditure, unemployment increased during her years of power. In fact, it doubled between 1979 and 1982. However, she did succeed in reducing inflation over her time in government. Another of her great aims was to reform the trade unions, a policy which would bring her great difficulty in the 1980s.
Besides a struggling economy which took years to turn around, one of the great black clouds over the Thatcher era was the miners’ strike, the biggest confrontation between the unions and the government. Following the announcement of the closure of mines that were unprofitable and with a view to privatising others, a large majority of miners’ downed tools in a strike that would cost the economy over a billion and devastate communities. Both sides refused to give in and by the time a deal was eventually done, the effects were monumental, splitting the entire nation and resulting in the closure of 150 mines over the years.
Perhaps her greatest victory and public supported policy was her approach to the Falklands War. In 1982, the ruling military in Argentina invaded the British-controlled Falkland Islands. Thatcher formed a war cabinet immediately and sent a naval force to reclaim the island. Argentina surrendered with the loss of 649 lives while Britain took control once more with the loss of 255 servicemen.
This victory and a crippled opposition led to Conservative victory in 1983 and they took office again in 1987 when the economy began to stabilise.
Impact on Politics
Even though the Conservatives won the Election in 1987, there were cracks beginning to really show in the party, mainly due to the poll tax (a tax based on the nominal rent value of the home, which Major subsequently abolished) and the opposition to a closer European Union. She resigned in 1990, handing control over the party to John Major.
There is no doubt that Thatcher had a huge impact on British politics. With her policies dubbed the “New Right” or “Thatcherism” to many, she set about changing the entire economic system in Britain. However, this wasn’t all positive. Her terms involved a huge amount of strikes across the country, political discontent and rising unemployment. She also came under fire for the fact that although she became the first female Prime Minister, she didn’t actually further the cause for women at all.
Thatcher was the longest serving Prime Minister since Lord Salisbury and although divisive, she was loyal to her policies, steadfast in her approach and relentless. Following her resignation, she continued to tour the globe and give speeches. She also founded the Thatcher Foundation.
In 2002, she retired from public speaking after suffering a number of strokes. She died on the 8th of April 2013 aged 87.
Best speech – The lady’s not for turning, Brighton, 1980.
“This afternoon I have tried to set before you some of my most deeply held convictions and beliefs. This Party, which I am privileged to serve, and this Government, which I am proud to lead, are engaged in the massive task of restoring confidence and stability to our people.
I have always known that that task was vital. Since last week it has become even more vital than ever. We close our Conference in the aftermath of that sinister utopia unveiled at Blackpool. Let Labour's Orwellian nightmare of the left be the spur for us to dedicate with a new urgency our every ounce of energy and moral strength to rebuild the fortunes of this free nation.
If we were to fail, that freedom could be imperilled. So let us resist the blandishments of the faint hearts; let us ignore the howls and threats of the extremists; let us stand together and do our duty, and we shall not fail.”
