Margaret Thatcher

The Right Honourable Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October, 1925), is a British stateswoman and was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990, also Leader of the Opposition from 1975, and the only woman to date to hold the former position. She is also the only woman to be in the latter position officially, though another has been the Acting Leader. She won 3 successive general elections and was the last person to do this until Tony Blair in 2005. However, although she had strong support from most voters for most of her reign she was eventually elected out of leadership by her own party and replaced by John Major in 1990 who went on to be re-elected himself in 1992. She is an elder stateswoman of the Conservative Party and the figurehead of a political philosophy that became known as Thatcherism, which involves reduced public spending, lower direct taxation, de-regulation, a monetarist policy, and a programme of privatisation of government-owned industries. Even before coming to power she was nicknamed the Iron Lady in Soviet media (because of her vocal opposition to communism), an appellation that stuck.

Legacy

Many British citizens remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard that Margaret Thatcher had resigned and what their reaction was. She was a polarising figure, who brought out strong reactions from people. Likewise, her legacy is highly disputed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Some people credit her microeconomic reforms with rescuing the British economy from the stagnation of the 1970s and admire her committed radicalism on social issues. Others see her as authoritarian and egotistical. She is accused of dismantling the Welfare State and of destroying much of the UK's manufacturing base.

Related Topics:
Radical - Welfare State

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The first charge reflects her government's rhetoric more than its actions, as it actually did little to reduce welfare expenditure, despite its desire to do so. The second charge may be credible in that there was a major fall in manufacturing employment, and some industries almost disappeared, though manufacturing does take a smaller share of employment and GDP as an economy modernises and the service sector expands. The UK was widely seen as the "sick man of Europe" in the 1970s, and some argued that it would be the first developed nation to return to the status of a developing country. Instead, the UK emerged as one of the most successful economies in modern Europe. Her supporters claim that this was due to Margaret Thatcher's policies.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Critics of this view believe that the economic problems of the 1970s were exaggerated, and were caused largely by factors outside any UK government's control, such as high oil prices caused by the oil crisis which led to high inflation which damaged the economies of nearly all major industrial countries. Accordingly, they also argue that the economic downturn was not the result of socialism and trade unions, as Thatcherite supporters claim. Critics also argue that the Thatcher period in government coincided with a general improvement in the world economy, and the buoyant tax revenues from North Sea oil (although this is sometimes a double-edged sword; see Dutch disease), and that these were the real cause of the improved economic environment of the 1980s rather than Margaret Thatcher's policies.

Related Topics:
Oil - Oil crisis - Inflation - Socialism - Trade union - Thatcherite - North Sea oil - Dutch disease - 1980s

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Perceptions of Margaret Thatcher are mixed in the view of the British public. A clear illustration of the divisions of opinion over Thatcher's leadership can be found in recent television polls: Thatcher appears at number 16 in the 2002 List of "100 Greatest Britons", which was the highest placing for a living person. She also appears at number 3 in the 2003 List of "100 Worst Britons", which was confined to those living, narrowly missing out on the top spot, which went to Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair. In the end, however, few could argue that there was any woman who played a more important role on the world stage in the 20th century. In perhaps the sincerest form of flattery, Labour Prime Minister, Tony Blair, himself a thrice-elected Prime Minister, has implicitly and explicitly acknowledged her importance, by continuing many of her economic policies.

Related Topics:
100 Greatest Britons - 100 Worst Britons - Labour - Prime Minister - Tony Blair

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Another view divides her economic legacy into two parts: market efficiency and long-term growth. The first part, due to her reforms, is quite controversial. While the unemployment rate did eventually come down, it came after initial job losses and radical labour market reforms. These included laws that weakened trade unions and the deregulation of financial markets, which certainly succeeded in returning the City to a leadership position as a European financial centre, and her push for increased competition in telecommunications and other public utilities. Long-term growth, according to available data, is considered low, due to lack of civil research and development spending, lowered education standards and ineffective job-training policies.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Many of her policies have proved to be divisive. In parts of Scotland, Wales and the urban and former mining areas of northern England she is still reviled. Many people remember the hardships of the miners' strike, which destroyed many mining communities, and the decline of industry as service industries boomed. This was reflected in the 1987 election, which she won by a landslide through winning large numbers of seats in southern England and the rural farming areas of northern England while winning few seats in the rest of the country. The fact that she continued to subsidise British agriculture heavily, whilst refusing subsidies to other troubled parts of the economy, has been bitterly criticised as evidence of partiality on her part.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Perceptions abroad broadly follow the same political divisions. On the left, Margaret Thatcher is generally regarded as somebody who used force to quash social movements, who imposed social reforms that disregarded the interests of the working class and instead favoured the wealthier elements of the middle class and business. Satirists have often caricatured her. For instance, French singer Renaud wrote a song, Miss Maggie, which lauded women as refraining from many of the silly behaviours of males—and every time making an exception for "Mrs Thatcher". She may be remembered most of all for revealing a disturbing yet significant tenet of Thatcherism in the declaration: "There is no such thing as society" http://briandeer.com/social/thatcher-society.htm to reporter Douglas Keay, for 'Womans Own' magazine, 23 September 1987 http://www.margaretthatcher.org/speeches/displaydocument.asp?docid=106689. This quote is often taken out of context and truncated. The original quote goes on to emphasise the importance of families and individuals in the fabric of British life. On the economical and political 'liberal' right, Thatcher is often remembered with some fondness as a conservative who dared to confront powerful unions and removed harmful constraints on the economy, though many do not openly claim to be following her example given the strong feelings that highly ideological Lady Thatcher and Thatcherism elicits in many.

Related Topics:
Working class - Middle class - French - Renaud - 23 September - 1987 - Liberal - Thatcherism

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the Republic of Ireland, she is generally remembered as an intransigent figure who eschewed negotiations with the IRA and contributed to the length and ferocity of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

Related Topics:
Republic of Ireland - IRA - The Troubles - Northern Ireland

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Her son Mark has been dogged by a series of controversies. In 1982 he went missing in the Sahara Desert when taking part in Algerian motor racing. In January 2005 he was fined three million rand (approximately $500,000) and received a four-year suspended jail sentence in South Africa after several months of house arrest, for abetting a coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea.

Related Topics:
Mark - Sahara Desert - 2005 - South Africa - House arrest - Coup - Equatorial Guinea

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~