Download or read book Successes and failures of Harold Wilson s premiership written by Oliver Christl and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2009-09-03 with total page 12 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essay from the year 2006 in the subject History of Europe - European Postwar Period, grade: 1,7, University of Birmingham, language: English, abstract: On 15 October 1964 after 13 years in opposition, Labour was elected the leading party in Britain once again. Although the majority of seats was one of the smallest in British history, the first years of Harold Wilson's premiership showed some promising political developments and relative economic progress. However, hopes for a change in the nation's economical position were soon disappointed as the government appeared unable to expand its early success and rather deteriorated the economical position of Britain compared to its rivals. This essay examines the reasons for both the successes and the failures of Harold Wilson's policies. It therefore concentrates on the Labour government's economic and foreign policies and their development during Wilson's premiership. II. Successes of Harold Wilson's policies At the elections in 1964 the electorate, albeit only marginally, voted in favour of a Labour campaign promising "A New Britain" in which the "decline of the 13 wasted years" of Conservative policies could be reversed by concentrating on scientific and technological progress and modernising the machinery of the government and the economy. But more than the party's manifesto, its charismatic political leader secured the election victory for Labour. Coming from a lower middle class family and having already presented himself as a most successful leader of the opposition, the elected candidate Harold Wilson, at 48 the youngest Prime Minister of the century so far, raised high expectations. Indeed, Wilson's government had a tremendous start and impressed the country with its dynamism and wealth of ideas. With economic issues being the most urgent problem facing Britain Labour set up a National Economic Plan that, in the words of James Callaghan, Wilson's Chancellor of the Exchequer, should function as "a framework for industrial development and production, whose object would be to increase exports and replace imports." Therefore, "the whole plan would be constructed on the potential capacity of each separate industry for production and export", with the result that "[e]very industry would be able to see where it fitted into the national economy and would be able to make long-term plans more safely than hitherto in the expectation of steady industrial growth throughout the rest of the economy." To draw up the National Plan the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) was established, which should counter Treasury power. In creating the DEA
Download or read book Successes and Failures of Harold Wilson s Premiership written by Oliver Christl and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2009 with total page 29 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essay from the year 2006 in the subject History Europe - Other Countries - European Postwar Period, grade: 1,7, University of Birmingham, language: English, abstract: On 15 October 1964 after 13 years in opposition, Labour was elected the leading party in Britain once again. Although the majority of seats was one of the smallest in British history, the first years of Harold Wilson's premiership showed some promising political developments and relative economic progress. However, hopes for a change in the nation's economical position were soon disappointed as the government appeared unable to expand its early success and rather deteriorated the economical position of Britain compared to its rivals. This essay examines the reasons for both the successes and the failures of Harold Wilson's policies. It therefore concentrates on the Labour government's economic and foreign policies and their development during Wilson's premiership. II. Successes of Harold Wilson's policies At the elections in 1964 the electorate, albeit only marginally, voted in favour of a Labour campaign promising "A New Britain" in which the "decline of the 13 wasted years" of Conservative policies could be reversed by concentrating on scientific and technological progress and modernising the machinery of the government and the economy. But more than the party's manifesto, its charismatic political leader secured the election victory for Labour. Coming from a lower middle class family and having already presented himself as a most successful leader of the opposition, the elected candidate Harold Wilson, at 48 the youngest Prime Minister of the century so far, raised high expectations. Indeed, Wilson's government had a tremendous start and impressed the country with its dynamism and wealth of ideas. With economic issues being the most urgent problem facing Britain Labour set up a National Economic Plan that, in the words of James Callaghan, Wilson's Chancellor of the Exchequer, should function as "
Download or read book John Major An Unsuccessful Prime Minister written by Kevin Hickson and published by Biteback Publishing. This book was released on 2017-05-23 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This year marks the twentieth anniversary of one of the most momentous general elections this country has ever seen. John Major's defeat in 1997 ended a record eighteen years of Tory government, prompting accusations of failure and ignominy. A controversial leader, Major oversaw numerous crises in international and domestic policy. Between 1990 and 1997, he presided over Britain's participations in the Gulf War, the start of the Northern Ireland peace process, the Maastricht Treaty negotiations and, famously, Black Wednesday and Britain's exit from the ERM. Towards the end, Major's government was split over Europe and ridden with allegations of sleaze. Widely criticised by the media and politicians from all parties, Major went on to be crushed by Tony Blair and New Labour in the 1997 general election. An Unsuccessful Prime Minister? is the first wide-ranging appraisal of John Major's government in nearly two decades. This book reconsiders the role of John Major as Prime Minister and the policy achievements of his government. Major's government faced many more constraints and left behind a more enduring legacy than his critics allowed at the time or since.
Download or read book Harold Wilson written by Andrew S. Crines and published by Biteback Publishing. This book was released on 2016-03-11 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This year marks the centenary of Harold Wilson's birth, the fiftieth anniversary of his most impressive general election victory and forty years since his dramatic resignation as Prime Minister. He was one of the longest-serving premiers of the twentieth century, having won a staggering four general elections, yet, despite this monumental record, his place in Labour's history remains somewhat ambiguous. By the end of his two periods in power, both the left and right of the party were highly critical of Wilson - the former regarding him as a traitor to socialism, the latter as contributing directly to British decline. With contributions from leading experts in the fields of political study, and from Wilson's own contemporaries, this remarkable new study offers a timely and wide-ranging reappraisal of one of the giants of twentieth-century politics, examining the context within which he operated, his approach to leadership and responses to changing social and economic norms, the successes and failure of his policies, and how he was viewed by peers from across the political spectrum. Finally, it examines the overall impact of Harold Wilson on the development of British politics.
Download or read book How Labour Governments Fall written by T. Heppell and published by Springer. This book was released on 2013-07-30 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What similarities exist between the reasons for Labour losing office in 2010 and those behind why previous Labour governments were defeated? This edited volume provides a detailed historical appraisal which considers the importance of themes such as economic performance; political leadership and the condition of the Conservatives in opposition.
Download or read book James Callaghan written by Kevin Hickson and published by Biteback Publishing. This book was released on 2020-11-03 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In November 1980, James Callaghan retired as leader of the Labour Party. He had been on the front line of British politics for many years and was the only person to hold all of the four great offices of state. However, his premiership is seen as a failure, the last gasp of Keynesian social democracy being smothered by the oncoming advent of Thatcherism. This book offers a timely reappraisal of Jim Callaghan's premiership and time as Leader of the Opposition in 1979–80.
Download or read book The Macmillan Diaries written by Harold Macmillan and published by MacMillan. This book was released on 2012-07-05 with total page 704 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From August 1950 until 1966 Harold Macmillan kept one of the fullest and most entertaining political diaries of the twentieth century. This first volume starts in the last full year of the post war Labour government, follows his rise through the Churchill and Eden governments via a succession of high offices, and culminates with his becoming Prime Minister in 1957. He was an acute observer of events and people not just in his own country or party, but on the wider international and political scene. His Diary provides wry portraits of many of the leading political figures of the period and records his personal take on the great issues and events of the day. In the process Macmillan's wider activities and inner concerns are also revealed, casting light beyond the famously 'unflappable' exterior onto the character of one of the most enigmatic figures in modern British political history.
Download or read book Harold Wilson written by Nick Thomas-Symonds and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2022-09-01 with total page 526 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Harold Wilson is the only post-war leader of any party to serve as Britain's Prime Minister on two separate occasions. In total he won four General Elections, spending nearly eight years in Downing Street. Half a century later, he is still unbeaten, Labour's greatest ever election winner. How did he do it - and at what cost? Critics then and now have painted him as an opportunistic political calculator, even as a Soviet secret agent. In this powerful new portrait, drawing on previously unavailable sources and first-hand parliamentary insight, acclaimed biographer Nick Thomas-Symonds reveals a more complex figure. Wilson was a new kind of politician but, in his own way, this media-savvy harbinger of modernity was also a deeply traditional man, whose actions often suggest nothing less than a spiritual mission. In an intriguing paradox, Wilson, influenced by the distinctively democratic faith of his Yorkshire boyhood, united a fractured Labour Party, ushering in the cultural and social changes of the 'swinging sixties'. His was the government to decriminalise homosexuality, legalise abortion and abolish capital punishment. With a brilliant mind, sure-footed political moves and a feel for public opinion, he was a survivor who over and over again emerged from desperate crises - even, perhaps, conspiracies - to lead his party to victory. It is time at last to learn his secrets.
Download or read book The Wilson Plot written by David Leigh and published by Pantheon. This book was released on 1988 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An account of treachery in British and American intelligence agencies.
Download or read book Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson written by Keith Jeffery and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2006-03-09 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson, an Irishman who in June 1922 was assassinated on his doorstep in London by Irish republicans, was one of the most controversial British soldiers of the modern age. Before 1914 he did much to secure the Anglo-French alliance and was responsible for the planning which saw the British Expeditionary Force successfully despatched to France after the outbreak of war with Germany. A passionate Irish unionist, he gained a reputation as an intensely 'political' soldier, especially during the 'Curragh crisis' of 1914 when some officers resigned their commisssions rather than coerce Ulster unionists into a Home Rule Ireland. During the war he played a major role in Anglo-French liaison, and ended up as Chief of the Imperial General Staff, professional head of the army, a post he held until February 1922. After Wilson retired from the army, he became an MP and was chief security adviser to the new Northern Ireland government. As such, he became a target for nationalist Irish militants, being identified with the security policies of the Belfast regime, though wrongly with Protestant sectarian attacks on Catholics. He is remembered today in unionist Northern Ireland as a kind of founding martyr for the state. Wilson's reputation was ruined in 1927 with the publication of an official biography, which quoted extensively and injudiciously from his entertaining, indiscreet, and wildly opinionated diaries, giving the impression that he was some sort of Machiavellian monster. In this first modern biography, using a wide variety of official and private sources for the first time, Keith Jeffery reassesses Wilson's life and career and places him clearly in his social, national, and political context.
Download or read book A Very British Coup written by Chris Mullin and published by Serpent's Tail. This book was released on 2010 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The classic political thriller that foretold the rise of Corbyn, from the acclaimed author of A View from the Foothills
Download or read book The British Prime Minister written by Anthony King and published by Duke University Press. This book was released on 1985 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The British prime minister is universally acknowledged to be the most powerful single individual in the British system of government, but very little is known about what goes on behind the closed door at #10 Downing Street. As Anthony King points out, there are few articles—let alone books—on the prime ministership available to students of British politics either in the UK or the US. As the preface to the American edition states, while the British prime minister and the American president "do resemble each other in some ways, it is important right at the start to recognize the profound differences between them."
Download or read book The Prime Ministers written by Steve Richards and published by . This book was released on 2020-09 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A landmark history of the men and women who have defined the UK's role in the modern world - and what makes them special - by a seasoned political journalist.
Download or read book The Prime Ministers written by Iain Dale and published by Hodder & Stoughton. This book was released on 2020-11-12 with total page 576 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: **Winner of the 2020 PARLIAMENTARY BOOK AWARDS for Best Political Book by a Non-Parliamentarian** A Times Political Book of the Year 'An entertaining, thorough and informative canter through the characters and stories of prime ministers past.' - New Statesman 'A wealth of enjoyable insights into three centuries of Westminster politics... It is a most elegant hardback volume, with a gilded cover that looks a little like the famous front door of No. 10 itself; the ideal Christmas gift.' - Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman 'This is a timely study of UK Prime Ministers and Iain Dale has done the subject a great service with this measured and thoughtful labour of love which offers a fascinating set of insights into the history of Britain, politics, the role of Prime Minister, and elite and establishment power... a superb guide to the times we have lived through and are living in.' - Gerry Hassan, Scottish Review *** 'Many of my predecessors were giants, some had feet of clay, all possessed human foibles.' - From the foreword by Boris Johnson It has almost been 300 years since Sir Robert Walpole arguably became the first holder of the office of Prime Minister in 1721 - an office which today is under scrutiny like never before. The Prime Ministers, edited by leading political commentator Iain Dale, brings to life all 55 of Britain's 'First Among Equals' with an essay for each office holder, written by key figures in British politics. From the obscure 18th-century figures like the Earl of Shelburne to 20th-century titans like Churchill and Thatcher, this book provides a much-needed reminder about their motivations, failures and achievements.
Download or read book Presidentializing the Premiership written by S. Pryce and published by Springer. This book was released on 1997-08-29 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Has the presidentialization of British electoral politics now penetrated other institutional and governmental relationships? This book argues it has in respect of the prime ministerial advisory system. The prime minister has become a president in the eyes of the electorate but remains a prime minister according to the constitution. To bridge this gap between their political and constitutional positions prime ministers have been forced to stretch the constitutional rules about advice, and presidentialize their advisory systems.
Download or read book Presidentializing the Premiership written by Sue Pryce and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 1997 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the advisory systems of four prime ministers: Harold Wilson 1964-70 and 1974-76; Edward Heath 1970-74; James Callaghan 1976-90, and argues that the presidentialization of electoral politics has prompted a presidentialization of the premiership in respect of advice.
Download or read book Where Power Stops written by David Runciman and published by Profile Books. This book was released on 2019-08-22 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lyndon Baines Johnson, Margaret Thatcher, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Barack Obama, Gordon Brown, Theresa May, and Donald Trump: each had different motivations, methods, and paths, but they all sought the highest office. And yet when they reached their goal, they often found that the power they had imagined was illusory. Their sweeping visions of reform faltered. They faced bureaucratic obstructions, but often the biggest obstruction was their own character. However, their personalities could help them as much as hurt them. Arguably the most successful of them, LBJ showed little indication that he supported what he is best known for - the Civil Rights Act - but his grit, resolve, and brute political skill saw him bend Congress to his will. David Runciman tackles the limitations of high office and how the personal histories of those who achieved the very pinnacles of power helped to define their successes and failures in office. These portraits show what characters are most effective in these offices. Could this be a blueprint for good and effective leadership in an age lacking good leaders?
