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Reitan, E. A. (Earl Aaron), 1925–
The Thatcher revolution: Margaret Thatcher, John Major, Tony Blair, and the
Transformation of Modern Britain, 1979–2001 / Earl A. Reitan.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
9781461645825
1. Great Britain—Politics and govemment—1979–1997. 2. Great Britain—
Politics and govemment—1997–3. Thatcher, Margaret. 4. Major, John Roy,
1943–5. Blair, Tony, 1953–I. Title.
DA589.7 .R45 2002
941.085—dc21
2002008628
Printed in the United States of America
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for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Preface
Introduction
CHAPTER ONE - The Rise of Margaret Thatcher
CHAPTER TWO - The Beginnings of Thatcherism, 1979–1983
CHAPTER THREE - The Heyday of Thatcherism, 1983–1987
CHAPTER FOUR - The Fall of Margaret Thatcher, 1987–1990
CHAPTER FIVE - Thatcherite Reform
CHAPTER SIX - John Major and the Thatcher Legacy, 1990–1993
CHAPTER SEVEN - John Major: Continuing the Thatcher Revolution
CHAPTER EIGHT - The Triumph of “New Labour,” 1994–1997
CHAPTER NINE - Tony Blair: Getting Going, 1997–1998
CHAPTER TEN - Toward a New Mandate, 1999-2001
CHAPTER ELEVEN - Major and Blair: Wrapping Up the Thatcher
Revolution
CHAPTER TWELVE - Assessment: What Was the Thatcher Revolution?
Bibliographical Note
Index
About the Author
Preface
The word “revolution” is a slippery one, but if the word means anything, it
means changes of a fundamental nature in a comparatively brief period of time.
The word fits the American, French, and Russian Revolutions; maybe the
Industrial Revolution, maybe not. The changes that took place in Britain from
1979, when Margaret Thatcher became prime minister, to 2001, when the first
ministry of Tony Blair ended, certainly were revolutionary. The Thatcher
Revolution broke down institutionalized barriers to development and opened a
failing country to the forces of globalization. Britain became a leader, not a
laggard, in the emerging world civilization of the late twentieth century.
This book is a revision, expansion, and extension of a book published in 1997
entitled Tory Radicalism: Margaret Thatcher, John Major, and the
Transformation of Modern Britain, 1979–1997. It is more than a new edition; all
chapters of the earlier book have been revised, some of them extensively, and
three new chapters have been added. The book presents a fair-minded account of
the ideas commonly called “Thatcherism” and the policies adopted by three
prime ministers to implement them. It is not scholarly in the conventional sense,
although it has been written by a professional historian. It is based on readily
available sources. Special attention has been given to the rise of “New Labour,”
as led and defined by Neil Kinnock and Tony Blair. Three new chapters cover
the first Blair ministry and consider the extent to which the objectives of New
Labour were achieved. The book has been written by an American historian for
North American readers. For British readers it will provide an American point of
view.
During my more than four decades as a professor of British history, my family
and I have been well treated on our many visits to Britain. We have enjoyed
Britain’s splendid public facilities as well as the hospitality of individuals.
Special thanks are due for the help and encouragement of British historians, who
share with American scholars in the joint enterprise of learning, teaching, and
writing about British history.
Earl A. Reitan
Normal, Illinois
Introduction
Britain Victorious, 1945
On May 8, 1945, Britain rejoiced at the end of the war in Europe. Britain was a
victorious power—an integral part of the alliance, dominated by the United
States and the Soviet Union, that had won the greatest and most complete victory
of modern times.
When he became prime minister in the dark days of 1940, Winston Churchill
formed a coalition government that included the leaders of all three political
parties: Conservative, Labour, and Liberal. When the war in Europe ended,
Churchill wanted to preserve the coalition government to complete the war
against Japan, but the Labour members refused. Public opinion overwhelmingly
favored an election, which would begin the process of putting Britain back on a
peacetime footing.
During the war, parliamentary elections had been suspended. The election that
took place in June 1945 was the first in ten years. Churchill had led Britain
through its darkest hours and to its greatest victory, but the British people did not
see him as the man who could fulfill their aspirations for the postwar world.
The leader of the Labour Party was Clement Attlee, who had served loyally
and well in Churchill’s wartime Cabinet. The Labour Party offered a specific
platform: a planned economy, nationalization of major industries, full
employment, extensive building of houses, a national health service, and a
comprehensive system of social security.
Although the Conservative Party manifesto included similar items, Churchill
campaigned poorly, railing against the dangers of socialism. The result was a
landslide victory for Labour, which gained a strong majority of the seats in the
House of Commons.
The Labour Revolution
The polity that turned to Margaret Thatcher in 1979 was shaped by the British
Labour Party in the years following World War II. A new and vastly expanded
