Conservative Victory Research Articles

The paradox of politics and policy in redistributing income

With political ideology with respect to the income distribution measured by proxy as the fraction of conservative coalition victories, it is found that over the period 1961–1984 the degree of conservative coalition strength is positively associated with changes in inequality, holding the effects of unemployment and inflation constant.

SCOTLAND AND THE 1987 GENERAL ELECTION:

The most startling characteristics of the 1987 General Election were, by common consent, the scale of the Conservative victory nationally and the extraordinary contrast to this British picture provided by the results in Scotland. North of the border the Conservatives found themselves reduced to holding only 10 of the 72 Scottish seats. Scottish Office Ministers such as Michael Ancram and John MacKay were dumped by the electorate, leaving the Secretary of State, Malcolm Rifkind, with the immediate problem of finding enough live bodies to fulfil the administrative requirements associated with parliamentary business in Scotland (apart from the difficulty of also ensuring that his team had a minimum level of ability necessary to understand and undertake their duties!).

Privatization, Thatcherism, and the British State

The Conservative victory in the 1979 General Election brought into office a government that was determined to end British decline and the crisis of state authority by making an ideological and political break with social democracy. This project has taken its name from the Conservative Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. But 'Thatcherism' has always been a highly controversial term. Opinion is divided as to whether the election of the Thatcher Government marked a major watershed in British politics, comparable to 1945. Many have argued that Thatcherism is more noteworthy for its rhetoric than for its achievements. They have been opposed by those who, while admitting that Thatcherism has often been incoherent and contradictory, nevertheless insist that what distinguishes the Thatcher Government from most of its predecessors is its strategic purpose.' Thatcherism projects a vision of a new social and economic order, which carries with it major implications for political and legal relationships.2 Thatcherism has appeared most clearly as a radical force through its challenge to many features of the existing state. Its main target has been social democracy. During the 1970s it came under strong attack in many countries, both as a form of government and as a governing doctrine. In Britain many of the assumptions and the priorities that had been established in the 1940s and the years of prosperity that followed were questioned and discarded. As the balance of forces between classes and nations shifted, so a new politics began to emerge, giving opportunities for both left and right. Old orthodoxies were swept away. The 1940s settlement in Britain had created a framework for policy which proved durable. It was based on a series of compromises from which emerged a new understanding about the constraints within which government operated and a new conception about the relationship between the public and private sectors.

Constraints on policy innovation in education: : Thatcher’s Britain and Mitterrand’s France

Changes in education policy were central to vision of egalatarian society proposed by Socialist and Communist parties in 1981. Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party focused less on education in 1979 British election but nonetheless called for increased parental choice and, in direct contrast to Left, for a reduction in public expenditure for education and a deemphasis of school's responsibility to fight social inequality. Four years after Left came to power, Lionel Jospin, secretary general of Socialist Party, offered these reflections to a colloquium on French Society and Its Schools: 1981 we thought we had ideas and convictions--some of which have been brutally unmasked. We thought that we had only to act. Today we can have a rational and concrete approach to problems of school, far from ideological and political concepts.' Across channel, government's leading ideologue, Sir Keith Joseph, confessed after three years as secretary of state for education and science that am myself ready to acknowledge that I underestimated task which we face in raising standards in schools when I took up my office in 1981. In particular, I did not at that time fully appreciate, for example, problems of teaching low attainers and special difficulties faced by teachers in many inner city schools.2 The following year, after having abandoned hope for a voucher system, Sir Keith told an interviewer that am a disappointed denationalizer. ... I found that it is just not practicable to have a state-financed but parentally conducted system. 3 Such confessions suggest that education policy in these two cases follows a familiar learning curve whereby policy ideas conceived by a party in opposition are overwhelmed by the realities once that party reaches office. One of principal objectives of this article is to explore nature of these realities. Yet it would be a mistake to conclude that and British education policies simply confirm view of those analysts, both Marxist and non-Marxist, who hold that elections and parties have little impact on policy. The Socialist victories of May and June 1981 produced an immediate increase in percentage of GDP expended on education, after three years of decline. In Britain reversal of respective budget priorities of education and defense in 1980s was largely consequence of Conservative victories of 1979 and 1983. The important question is not whether newly elected governments can alter policy, but rather under what conditions and in which policy areas. The Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher and Socialist governments under Frangois Mitterrand belong to a relatively rare set of democratic governments which come to office with a reliable parliamentary majority and an announced objective of effecting fundamental change in a wide range of public policies. The experience of these governments in attempting to

Forecast Summary

We have assumed a Conservative victory in an autumn General Election and the continuation of policies aimed at a gradual reduction of inflation in the medium term. The outlook for 1987 is for a more broadly‐based expansion of demand and output growth in excess of 3 per cent. This is combined with a large current account deficit and an increase in inflation. But signs are emerging that UK industry is now responding to last year's improvement in competitiveness and the forecast suggests that, over the next four years, the economy should combine non‐oil output growth of 3 per cent with inflation of a similar order of magnitude.

Des motifs des électeurs au scrutin fédéral de 1984: le cas de Sudbury

AbstractPrior to the 1984 Canadian federal electoral campaign, public opinion polls were predicting a Liberal victory. During the period of the campaign, the polls predicted a Conservative victory. What was it that produced this change among the electorate? This article attempts to respond to this question on the basis of an exploratory study carried out in the riding of Sudbury. The study shows that the focus of the election was less on the campaign platforms of the different parties than on the impossible mission facing the Liberal party and especially its leader.

The Vicissitudes of West German Social Democracy in the Crisis of the 1980s

Avisitor to the Social Democratic Party (SPD) headquarters - the famed Barracke in Bonn - on the evening of 6 March 1983, could not help but feel a deep sense of destitution and gloom amongst the Federal Republic's Social Democrats,I Pipe-smoking intellectuals and hardened unionists alike conveyed the unmistakable feeling that the conservative victory on that Sunday in March heralded the end of an era. For nearly seventeen years, social democracy in West Germany had shared state power - perhaps the most coveted goal in the staatsfixiert tradition of German social democracy.

The British Labour Party & the Decline of Class PoliticsDecade of Dealignment: The Conservative Victory of 1979 and Electoral Trends in the 1970s. By Bo Sarlvik and Ivor Crewe The Politics of the Labour Party. By Dennis Kavanagh Consensus and beyond: The Development of Labour Party Strategy since the Second World War. By Alan Warde Britain against Itself: The Political

Previous article No AccessReview ArticlesThe British Labour Party & the Decline of Class Politics Decade of Dealignment: The Conservative Victory of 1979 and Electoral Trends in the 1970s. By Bo Sarlvik and Ivor Crewe The Politics of the Labour Party. By Dennis Kavanagh Consensus and beyond: The Development of Labour Party Strategy since the Second World War. By Alan Warde Britain against Itself: The Political Contradictions of Collectivism. By Samuel H. Beer Joel D. WolfeJoel D. Wolfe Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Polity Volume 17, Number 3Spring 1985 The Journal of the Northeastern Political Science Association Copyright 1985 Northeastern Political Science AssociationPDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Decade of Dealignment: The Conservative Victory of 1979 and Electoral Trends in the 1970s. By Bo Sarlvik and Ivor Crewe. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983. Pp. xv + 393. $49.50.)

Decade of Dealignment: The Conservative Victory of 1979 and Electoral Trends in the 1970s. By Bo Sarlvik and Ivor Crewe. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983. Pp. xv + 393. $49.50.) - Volume 78 Issue 4

Decade of Dealignment: The Conservative Victory of 1979 and Electoral Trends in the 1970s

Preface Note on documentation Note on tables Part I. Political Context and Electoral Change Ivor Crewe: 1. The flow of events 2. The flow of the vote 3. The lockgates on the vote Part II. Issues, Opinion and Party Choice in the 1979 Election Bo Sarlvik: 4. Opinions on political issues and voting - the directions of the enquiry 5. Why the parties were liked and disliked 6. Managing the economy - the Labour government's record and the Conservative alternative 7. Responses to social and cultural change 8. Nationalisation and social welfare policies - a rightward shift in electoral opinion 1974-1979 9. Policy alternatives and party choice in the 1979 election 10. Ambiguity and change in party positions: three special cases 11. The impact of the issues - an overall account 12. The electorate and the party system 13. The making of voting decisions: political opinions and voting intentions during the campaign Part III. A Turning-Point?: 14. At the end of a decade Postscript: realignment in the 1980s? Appendix. Constructing the flow-of-the-vote tables Notes Index.

The Red and the Green: Patterns of Partisan Choice in Wales

The distinguishing features of recent electoral politics in Wales have been the continued predominance of the Labour party and the failure of the nationalist party, Plaid Cymru. Since 1945 Labour has taken between twenty-one and thirty-two of the thirty-six seats at each general election and not less than 47 per cent of the vote. There has been some weakening of Labour's position since the high point of 60·6 per cent in 1966, but the party still secured 46·9 per cent of the vote in 1979, and rode out the Conservative victory in Britain as a whole with the loss of only two seats in Wales. Some variation in the Labour vote can be explained in terms of general shifts in British politics. However the enduring weight of Labour support in Wales in unpropitious times requires further explanation.

Bonn's Ostpolitik at the Crossroads?

In September 1982 the Social and Free Democratic coalition1 collapsed after thirteen years' rule; the conservative Union parties coalesced with the Free Democrats to return to power in Bonn. Two months later Brezhnev died in Moscow amidst an ongoing new Cold War with the Reagan Administration. His successor, as the Chief of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), turned out to be the former KGB chief, Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov. With time running out for NATO's deployment of new missiles in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and other West European states, and a significant conservative victory in the United Kingdom elections in June 1983, elements of uncertainty in the crucial relations between Bonn and Moscow may have increased. Between 1969 and 1982 the (SPD) had managed to reverse the (CDU's) twenty years of hardline approach to the Soviet bloc. Despite irritations, Bonn under SPD-led governments managed to keep its ostpolitik on an even keel. Central European detente seemed to have survived the collapse of the larger, superpower rapprochement. The critical question in mid-1983, following the conservative election victories in Bonn and London and against the background of significant US-USSR rivalry, is whether the latter rivalry would also suck into its vortex relative peace in Central Europe. Should that happen, the Cold War would return to Europe, reinforce the anomalies emanating from a divided Germany as well as the superpower adversary relationship in turn. In this context the present article will, first, take a retrospective look at ostpolitik, its causes and achievements, then explore Bonn's relations with Moscow as they evolved while the SPD was in power and, finally analyze the implications of the leadership changes in Bonn and Moscow for the future of ostpolitik.

The Changed Character of British Foreign and Security Policy

The significance of the clear Conservative victory in the British general election of May 1979 has already become apparent in relation to domestic politics in that country. In the area of financial and economic policy in particular, almost every decision taken by the Conservative government suggests that Prime Minister Thatcher's administration intends to apply the rigorous monetarist doctrines that she spelled out during the election campaign, and to make a sharp break from the policies of post-war governments in such matters as taxation. In the area of foreign policy, however, the implications of the change of government are not as evident. Foreign policy is to a large extent a subject on which there is a good deal of consensus between the parties and where the influence of official advisers ensures continuity. Yet there are aspects of British foreign and defense policy which are undergoing distinct changes now that the Conservative Party, rather than Labour, is in office. Many of the differences, it is true, are differences of personality and style rather than radical changes in the substance of policy; but in foreign policymaking and diplomacy, there are obviously occasions on which the nuances of a government's approach to a topic will be as important as its more tangible and explicit objectives. In this commentary, it is my intention to underline some of the distinctive features of Conservative attitudes towards international affairs as well as to draw attention to the way in which the internal politics of the Party have already influenced, and may continue to influence, the behavior of the leadership.

Topics

The General Secretary of the NUR was reported as threatening that, in the event of a Conservative victory in the General Election, his members would be instructed to “get their snouts in the trought” when it came to a pay claim. Sidney Weighell is obviously a rail chauvinist pig.

The Catholic Historian in Nineteenth Century Chile

Church-State relations in nineteenth century Chile remained relatively calm when compared with tempestuous events occuring in Mexico during the War of the Reform. While tempers flared in both nations when the rights of the Church in a secular society were discussed, the problem was resolved in Chile without bloodshed or violence. The question of the economic power of the Church had already been settled by 1830, as the financial genius of the new Republic, Manuel Rengifo, urged that all lands that had been confiscated by Bernardo O’Higgins in 1824 be returned to the original owners. Despite a well-intentioned belief that Church ownership of land was smothering the economic development of the new nation, the expropriation of these lands failed to produce any dramatic change. While the Treasury received 226, 442 pesos for the sale and rental of these lands, the government was forced to spend 181,297 pesos from 1824 to 1830 in order to finance religious affairs and pay the congregations for the expropriation of their lands. After the Conservative victory at Lircay in 1830 the lands were returned to the Church, providing considerable relief for the heavily burdened state treasury. The minor importance of Church property to the Chilean economy was symbolized by the relative ease of the confiscation and return of the lands, while similar attempts in Mexico unleashed civil war.

Some Sources for the History of the Endowed Schools Commission, 1869-1900

t is generally agreed among educational historians that the establishment of the Endowed Schools Commission in 1869 following the Report of the Taunton Commission (1864-68)1 on the state of schools offering an education above that of elementary led to many changes in secondary education in the last 30 years of the nineteenth century. Although most writers refer to the Commission, there has been little systematic attempt so far to examine its work in detail. It is hoped to show here some of the sources which are available for making such a study. Briefly, the tasks of the Endowed Schools Commission were to redistribute charitable endowments which were not being fully utilized and to widen the areas which would receive benefits from them; to ensure that schools were put on a sound financial footing; to establish the 'grade' of a school in a given area; to reform governing bodies and trustees; to destroy the Church qualification for headmasters, assistant masters and pupil entry; and to provide in the schemes for boys of ability the opportunity of benefiting from the reformed schools through exhibitions and scholarships. This enormous task was to be completed in 3 years in the first instance by 3 full-time Commissioners and a number of Assistant Commissioners. The Commission itself, the brainchild of a Liberal Government, was destroyed by Disraeli after the Conservative victory in 1874. Nevertheless, the work of the Commission was carried on on similar lines as a Department of the Charity Commission, but retaining its own identity and staff. On the creation of the Board of Education in 1899, the officers of the Endowed Schools Department were absorbed into the Secondary Branch of the Education Department. Part 2 of the original Endowed Schools Act 1869 envisaged the creation of an Educational Council, consisting of University representatives and Crown nominees, working through Provincial Councils which would cover the whole country. Under this section of the Act, endowed schools could have been examined in any subject by the Council's inspectors and a Teachers' Registration Council was to have been set up. This part of the Bill was bitterly attacked and subsequently dropped, 1 See 'Sources for the History of the English Grammar School-II', W. E. Tate, in

Is Conviction Enough?

No one recently in Britain should have been surprised by the results of the October General Election. It was all too painfully apparent that the Labor Party had neither the leadership nor policy capable of arousing the enthusiasm of a populace intrigued by its first taste of a consumption economy. It is undoubtedly premature to interpret the results of the election as spelling the doom of the Labor Party. It still has over 12 million voters and holds 258 seats in the Parliament. Yet the fact remains that the Conservative victory, the third in a row, was an unprecedented event in British politics, and for the fourth time there was a decline in Labor's share of the total vote.This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.

Conservative Victory in Britain

Conservative Victory in Britain

The British Election

After experimenting with coalitions and with a minority Labor government, the voters of Great Britain on October 29, in their third general election in two years, returned the Conservative party to power with a large majority over the combined opposition groups. Thus the traditional system of party government was restored. The desire for stability and the fear of fundamental changes in the political and economic order were probably the chief causes of the overwhelming Conservative victory.

A Conservative Victory in the United States

A Conservative Victory in the United States