Political history of the United Kingdom (1979–present)
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The modern political history of the United Kingdom (1979–present) began when
Thatcher's successor,
Blair led Britain into the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars before leaving office in 2007, when he was succeeded by his Chancellor, Gordon Brown. A global recession in 2008–10 led to Labour's defeat in the 2010 election. It was replaced by a Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government, headed by David Cameron, that pursued a series of public spending cuts with the intention of reducing the budget deficit. In 2016, the UK voted in an advisory referendum to leave the European Union, which led to Cameron's resignation. Cameron was succeeded by his Home Secretary, Theresa May.
May engaged in a policy to take the country out of the European Union through her flagship Brexit withdrawal agreement. When this deal failed to pass through the House of Commons three times, May resigned. The subsequent Conservative leadership election was won by former Foreign Secretary and Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, who became Prime Minister in July 2019. A Conservative landslide victory in the general election five months later allowed for a majority government and the UK's withdrawal from the EU in January 2020. Amid numerous scandals and a government crisis, Johnson resigned in September 2022 and was succeeded by his Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. She was appointed Prime Minister by Queen Elizabeth II, just two days before the latter's death. Amid yet another government crisis, Truss resigned seven weeks into her tenure in October 2022, and was succeeded by Rishi Sunak, the first Prime Minister to be appointed during the reign of King Charles III.
Conservative Government, 1979–97
Margaret Thatcher (1979–90)
Thatcher
Irish issues
In 1981, a new tactic was used to mobilize support, as
Thatcher continued the policy of "Ulsterisation" promoted by the previous Labour government, believing that the unionists of Ulster should be at the forefront in combating Irish republicanism. This meant relieving the burden on the mainstream British Army and elevating the role of the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Ulster Constabulary.[7]
In November 1985, Thatcher signed the Hillsborough
Economics
In economic policy, Thatcher and her Chancellor Sir
Her early tax policy reforms were based on the monetarist theories of Milton Friedman rather than the supply-side economics of Arthur Laffer and Jude Wanniski, which the government of Ronald Reagan espoused. There was a severe recession in the early 1980s, and the Government's economic policy was widely blamed. In January 1982, the inflation rate dropped to single figures and interest rates fell. Unemployment peaked at 3.1 million and remained at that level until 1986.[10] The recession of the early 1980s was the deepest in Britain since the depression of the 1930s and Thatcher's popularity plummeted; most predictions had her losing the next election.
Falklands War
In Argentina, an unstable military junta was in power and keen on reversing its huge economic unpopularity. On 2 April 1982, it invaded the Falkland Islands, the only invasion of a British territory since World War II. Argentina has claimed the islands since an 1830s dispute on their settlement. Thatcher sent a naval task force to recapture the Islands. The ensuing Falklands War saw the swift defeat of Argentina in only a few days of fighting, resulting in a wave of patriotic enthusiasm for Thatcher personally, at a time when her popularity had been at an all-time low for a serving Prime Minister. Opinion polls showed a huge surge in Conservative support which would be sufficient to win a general election. In the end, the war probably raised the Conservative vote by about six points, according to scholarly studies of the polling data.[11][12]
This "
Hong Kong
China demanded the return of Hong Kong with the expiration of Britain's 99-year lease on most of the territory in 1997. Thatcher negotiated directly in September 1982 with that country's leader Deng Xiaoping.[15] They agreed on the Sino-British Joint Declaration over the Question of Hong Kong which provided for a peaceful transfer of Hong Kong to Beijing's control in 15 years' time, after which the city would be allowed to retain its "capitalistic" system for another 50 years.
Thatcher's strong opposition against communism as represented by the Soviet Union as well as the decisive military victory against Argentina, re-affirmed Britain's influential position on the world stage and bolstered Thatcher's firm leadership. In addition the economy was showing positive signs of recovery thanks mainly to substantial oil revenues from the North Sea.[16]
Nuclear disarmament
The 1983 election was also influenced by events in the opposition parties. Since their 1979 defeat, Labour was increasingly dominated by its "
Trade union power
Thatcher was committed to reducing the power of the trade unions but, unlike the Heath government, adopted a strategy of incremental change rather than a single Act. Several unions launched
Thatcher's political and economic philosophy
Thatcher's political and economic philosophy emphasised
In the Cold War, Thatcher supported Ronald Reagan's policies of Rollback with the goal of reducing or ending Soviet Communist power.[18] This contrasted with the policy of détente which the West had pursued during the 1970s, and caused friction with allies still wedded to the idea of détente. The United States Armed Forces were permitted by Mrs. Thatcher to station nuclear cruise missiles at British Armed Forces bases, arousing mass protests by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. However, she later was the first Western leader to respond warmly to the rise of reformist Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, declaring she liked him and "We can do business together" after a meeting three months before he came to power in 1985. This was a start in swinging the West back to a new détente with the Soviet Union in his era, as it proved to be an indication that the Soviet regime's power was decaying. Thatcher outlasted the Cold War, which ended in 1989, and voices who share her views on it credit her with a part in the West's victory, by both the deterrence and détente postures.
She supported the
By winning the
She was known as "Maggie" in the popular tabloids, which inspired the well-known "Maggie Out!" protest song, sung throughout that period by some of her opponents. Her unpopularity on the left is evident from the lyrics of several contemporary popular songs: "Stand Down Margaret" (The Beat), "Tramp the Dirt Down" (Elvis Costello), "Mother Knows Best" (Richard Thompson), and "Margaret on the Guillotine" (Morrissey).[19]
Many opponents believed she and her policies created a significant north–south divide from the Bristol Channel to The Wash, between the "haves" in the economically dynamic south and the "have nots" in the northern rust belt. Hard welfare reforms in her third term created an adult Employment Training system that included full-time work done for the dole plus a £10 top-up, on the workfare model from the US. The "Social Fund" system that placed one-off welfare payments for emergency needs under a local budgetary limit, and where possible changed them into loans, and rules for assessing jobseeking effort by the week, were breaches of social consensus unprecedented since the 1920s.
The sharp fall in unemployment continued. By the end of 1987, it stood at just over 2,600,000 – having started the year still in excess of 3,000,000. It stood at just over 2,000,000 by the end of 1988, and by the end of 1989 less than 1,700,000 were unemployed. However, total economic growth for 1989 stood at 2% – the lowest since 1982 – signalling an end to the economic boom. Several other countries had now entered recession, and fears were now rife that Britain was also on the verge of another recession.[20]
In 1988, Thatcher, a trained chemist, became concerned with
In September 1988, at
Thatcher's popularity once again declined in 1989 as the economy suffered from high interest rates imposed to stop an unsustainable
That November, Thatcher was challenged for the leadership of the Conservative Party by Sir
Thatcher's new system to replace
Additional problems emerged when many of the tax rates set by local councils proved to be much higher than earlier predictions. Some have argued that local councils saw the introduction of the new system of taxation as the opportunity to make significant increases in the amount taken, assuming (correctly) that it would be the originators of the new tax system and not its local operators who would be blamed.
A large London demonstration against the poll tax in Trafalgar Square on 31 March 1990 – the day before it was introduced in England and Wales – turned into a riot. Millions of people resisted paying the tax. Opponents of the tax banded together to resist bailiffs and disrupt court hearings of poll tax debtors. Mrs Thatcher refused to compromise, or change the tax, and its unpopularity was a major factor in Thatcher's downfall.
By the autumn of 1990, opposition to Thatcher's policies on local government taxation, her Government's perceived mishandling of the economy (especially high interest rates of 15%, which were undermining her core voting base within the home-owning, entrepreneurial and business sectors), and the divisions opening within her party over the appropriate handling of European integration made Thatcher and her party seem increasingly politically vulnerable. Her increasingly combative, irritable personality also made opposition to her grow fast and by this point, even many in her own party could not stand her.
John Major (1990–97)
In November 1990, Michael Heseltine challenged Margaret Thatcher for leadership of the Conservative Party. Thatcher fell short of the required 15% majority in the first round and was persuaded to withdraw from the second round on 22 November, ending her 11-year premiership. Her Chancellor of the Exchequer John Major contested the second round and defeated Michael Heseltine as well as Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, becoming prime minister on 28 November 1990.[22]
By this stage, however, Britain had slid into recession for the third time in less than 20 years. Unemployment had started to rise in the spring of 1990 but by the end of the year it was still lower than in many other European economies, particularly France and Italy.
John Major was Prime Minister during British involvement in the Gulf War. Polls improved for the Conservatives despite the recession deepening throughout 1991 and into 1992, with the economy for 1991 falling 2% and unemployment passing the 2,000,000 mark.[23] Major called a general election for April 1992 and took his campaign onto the streets, famously delivering many addresses from an upturned soapbox as in his Lambeth days. This populist "common touch", in contrast to the Labour Party's more slick campaign, chimed with the electorate and Major won, albeit with a small parliamentary majority.[24]
The narrow majority for the
At the 1993 Conservative Party Conference, Major began his ill-fated "Back to Basics" campaign, which he intended to be about the economy, education, policing, and other such issues, but it was interpreted by many (including Conservative cabinet ministers) as an attempt to revert to the moral and family values that the Conservative Party were often associated with. A number of sleaze scandals involving Conservative MP's were exposed in lurid and embarrassing detail in tabloid newspapers following this and further reduced the Conservative's popularity. Despite Major's best efforts, the Conservative Party collapsed into political infighting. Major took a moderate approach but found himself undermined by the right-wing within the party and his Cabinet.
Major's policy towards the
One of the few bright spots of 1993 for the Conservative government came in April when the end of the recession was finally declared after nearly three years. Unemployment had touched 3,000,000 by the turn of the year, but had dipped to 2,800,000 by Christmas as the economic recovery continued. The economic recovery was strong and sustained throughout 1994, with unemployment falling below 2,500,000 by the end of the year. However, Labour remained ascendant in the opinion polls and their popularity further increased with the election of
Few were surprised when Major lost the
Labour Government, 1997–2010
Tony Blair (1997–2007)
From the beginning, New Labour's record on the economy and unemployment was strong, suggesting that they could break with the trend of Labour governments overseeing an economic decline while in power. They had inherited an unemployment count of 1,700,000 from the Conservatives, and by the following year unemployment was down to 1,300,000 – a level not seen since James Callaghan was in power some 20 years previously. A minimum wage was announced in May 1998, coming into force from April 1999.[31] Unemployment would remain similarly low for the next 10 years.[32]
The long-running
In foreign policy, following the
46,000 British troops, one-third of the total strength of the
The Labour government was re-elected with a second successive landslide in the general election of June 2001.[33] Blair became the first Labour leader to lead the party to three successive election victories when they won the 2005 general election, though this time he had a drastically reduced majority.[34]
The Conservatives had so far failed to represent a serious challenge to Labour's rule, with John Major's successor William Hague unable to make any real improvement upon the disastrous 1997 general election result at the next election four years later. He stepped down after the 2001 election to be succeeded by Iain Duncan Smith, who did not even hold the leadership long enough to contest a general election – being ousted by his own MP's in October 2003[35] and being replaced by Michael Howard, who had served as Home Secretary in the previous Conservative government under John Major. Howard failed to win the 2005 general election for the Conservatives but he at least had the satisfaction of narrowing the Labour majority, giving his successor (he announced his resignation shortly after the election) a decent platform to build upon.[36] However, the Conservatives began to re-emerge as an electable prospect following the election of David Cameron as Howard's successor in December 2005. Within months of Cameron becoming Conservative leader, opinion polls during 2006 were showing a regular Conservative lead for the first time since Black Wednesday 14 years earlier. Despite the economy still being strong and unemployment remaining low, Labour's decline in support was largely blamed upon poor control of immigration and allowing Britain to become what was seen by many as an easy target for terrorists.[37]
Devolution
Blair also came into power with a policy of
Devolution also returned to
Gordon Brown (2007–10)
Tony Blair tendered his resignation as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to the Queen on 27 June 2007, his successor Gordon Brown assuming office the same afternoon. Brown took over as Prime Minister without having to face either a general election or a contested election for leadership of the Labour Party.
Brown's style of government differed from that of his predecessor, Tony Blair, who had been seen as presidential. Brown rescinded some of the policies which had either been introduced or were planned by Blair's administration. He remained committed to close ties with the United States and to the Iraq war, although he established an inquiry into the reasons why Britain had participated in the conflict. He proposed a "government of all the talents" which would involve co-opting leading personalities from industry and other professional walks of life into government positions. Brown also appointed Jacqui Smith as the UK's first female Home Secretary, while Brown's old position as Chancellor was taken over by Alistair Darling.
Brown was closer to American thinking, and more distant from Europe, than Blair. In major issues with foreign policy complications, He paid close attention to both the
We cannot build a dynamic economy unless we can unleash the potential and everyone. A welfare state that thwarts the opportunities that we need to hold the economy back. A welfare state that encourages work is not only fair but makes for greater dynamism in the economy.[39]
Brown's reaction to the great 2008 banking crisis was much more pro active than France or Germany, and in many ways resembled the Bush policies in Washington. Brown's goals were to provide more liquidity to the financial system, to recapitalise the banks and to guarantee bank debt. He lowered the VAT to encourage consumer spending and to keep the economy from sinking.[40]
Brown's rise to prime minister sparked a brief surge in Labour support as the party topped most opinion polls. There was talk of a "snap" general election, which it was widely believed Labour could win, but Brown decided against calling an election.[41]
Several major banks were nationalised after falling into financial difficulties, while large amounts of money were pumped into the economy to encourage spending. Brown was also press ganged into giving
Further
Initially, during the first four months of his premiership, Brown enjoyed a solid lead in the polls. His popularity amongst the public may be due to his handling of numerous serious events during his first few weeks as Prime Minister, including two attempted terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow at the end of June. However, between the end of 2007 and September 2008, his popularity had fallen significantly, with two contributing factors believed to be his perceived change of mind over plans to call a
In January 2010, it was revealed that Britain's economy had resumed growth after a recession which had seen a record six successive quarters of economic detraction. However, it was a narrow return to growth, and it came after the other major economies had come out of recession.[44]
The
His deputy Harriet Harman became Leader of the Opposition until September 2010, when Ed Miliband was elected Leader of the Labour Party.
Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition Government, 2010–15
The
In March 2011, UK, along with France and USA voted for military intervention against Gaddafi's Libya leading to
In 2012, the Summer Olympics returned to London for the first time since 1948. The United States claimed the largest count of gold medals, with Britain running third place after China.
In 2014, Scotland voted in a referendum on the question of becoming an independent country. The No side, supported by the three major UK parties, secured a 55% to 45% majority for Scotland to remain part of the United Kingdom.[47] Following the result on 18 September 2014, Scotland's First Minister, Alex Salmond, announced his intention to step down as First Minister and leader of the SNP. He was replaced by his deputy, Nicola Sturgeon.[48]
Conservative Government, 2015–present
David Cameron (2015–16)
Following years of austerity, the British economy was on an upswing in 2015. In line with the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, the 2015 general election was called for 7 May 2015. The Conservatives claimed credit for the upswing, promising to keep taxes low and reduce the deficit as well as promising an In/out referendum on the UK's relationship with the European Union. The opposition Labour Party called for a higher minimum wage, and higher taxes on the rich. In Scotland, the SNP attacked the austerity programme, opposed nuclear weapons and demanded that promises of more autonomy for Scotland made during the independence referendum be delivered.
Pre-election polls had predicted a close race and a hung parliament, but the surprising result was that a majority Conservative government was elected. The Conservatives with 37% of the popular vote held a narrow majority with 331 of the 650 seats. The other main victor was the Scottish National Party which won 56 of the 59 seats in Scotland, a gain of 50. Labour suffered its worst defeat since 1987, taking only 31% of the votes and 232 seats; they lost 40 of their 41 seats in Scotland. The Liberal Democrats vote fell by 2/3 and they lost 49 of their 57 seats, as their coalition with the Conservatives had alienated the great majority of their supporters. The new UK Independence Party (UKIP), rallying voters against Europe and against immigration, did well with 13% of the vote count. It came in second in over 115 constituencies but came in first in only one. Women now comprise 29% of the MPs.[49][50] Following the election, the Leaders of the Labour Party and Liberal Democrats both resigned. They were replaced by Jeremy Corbyn and Tim Farron, respectively.
2016 European Union membership referendum
This section needs to be updated.(June 2017) |
On 23 June 2016, UK voters elected to withdraw from the European Union by a thin margin with 48% in favour of remaining, 52% in favour of leaving the European Union. London, Scotland, and Northern Ireland were three regions most in favour of the Remain vote, while Wales and England's northern region were strongly pro-Leave. Although he called for the referendum, British Prime Minister David Cameron had campaigned ardently for the Remain vote. He faced significant opposition from other parties on the right who came to view British membership in the European Union as a detriment to the country's security and economic vitality. UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage called the vote Britain's "independence day".[51]
Brexit had a few immediate consequences. Hours after the results of the referendum, David Cameron announced that he would resign as Prime Minister, claiming that "fresh leadership" was needed.[52] In addition, because Scottish voters were highly in favour of remaining in the EU, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that the Scottish Government would begin to organize another referendum on the question of Scottish independence.[53] On the economic side of things, the value of the British pound declined sharply after the results of the election were made clear. Stock markets in both Britain and New York were down the day after the referendum. Oil prices also fell.[54]
Theresa May (2016–19)
This section needs to be updated.(June 2017) |
A
Boris Johnson (2019–22)
This section needs to be updated.(September 2022) |
The premiership of
On 3 September 2019, Johnson threatened to call a general election after opposition and rebel Conservative MPs successfully voted against the government to take control of the order of business with a view to preventing a
Johnson then oversaw the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic in which the government imposed national lockdowns, health programs, and vaccination rollouts. The economic effects of the pandemic, Brexit, and other factors led to a cost-of-living crisis beginning in 2021 which saw the prices of many goods and services to skyrocket in the United Kingdom.[65] The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 led Johnson to support Ukraine financially and militarily, with Johnson traveling to Kyiv to visit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.[66][67] Various scandals rocked the Johnson ministry throughout 2022 including Johnson personally being served a fine for Partygate, in which 10 Downing Street was revealed to host social gatherings during the nationwide lockdown orders during the pandemic.[68][69] The embroilment of Chris Pincher in a sex scandal led to mass resignations in Johnson's cabinet, leading Johnson to announce his resignation in July 2022. However, Johnson served as caretaker PM for several weeks until a new leader had been chosen.[70][71]
Liz Truss (September – October 2022)
The premiership of Liz Truss began on 6 September 2022 following a leadership election. Queen Elizabeth II's invitation for Truss to form a government was one of her last acts as monarch before her death just two days later. This saw Charles III ascend to the throne and the funeral of the late monarch dominating Truss's first weeks in office.[72]
Truss and Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng unveiled a "mini-budget" on 23 September 2022 which proposed cutting various taxes against the backdrop of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. The budget received significant backlash, with the price of the pound as well as Truss's approval rating to fall to record lows.[73][74] Kwarteng resigned, with Jeremy Hunt taking over as Chancellor, who reversed all proposals of the mini-budget within days; however this did not alleviate the political pressure on Truss. She announced her resignation on 20 October 2022, making her the shortest serving Prime Minister to date.[75] A leadership election was called to replace Truss within a week of her announcement.[76] A head of lettuce gained international notoriety for outlasting Truss during a livestream by the Daily Star.[77]
Rishi Sunak (2022–present)
The premiership of
Sunak continued to oversee the British government's response to the
See also
- 2010s in United Kingdom political history
- 2020s in United Kingdom political history
- Social history of England § Since 1945
- Post–World War II economic expansion
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- ^ "Liz Truss's poll ratings plummet lower than Boris Johnson's before he was forced out". The Guardian. 1 October 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- ^ "The shortest serving Prime Ministers in history as Liz Truss sets new record". Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- ^ "Truss triggers Tory leadership contest - what happens next?". The Guardian. 20 October 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- ^ "Our lettuce outlasted Liz Truss, British paper declares, as PM quits". Reuters. 20 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
- ^ "Rishi Sunak vows to fix Liz Truss's mistakes in first speech as PM". BBC News. 25 October 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ^ Adu, Aletha; correspondent, Aletha Adu Political (19 May 2023). "Rishi Sunak's family fortune falls by £200m in Sunday Times rich list". The Guardian.
- ^ "Here's Everyone Who Will—and Won't—Go to King Charles III's Coronation". Time. Archived from the original on 12 April 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
Further reading
- Bernstein, G. (2004). The Myth of Decline: The Rise of Britain Since 1945. London: Harvill Press. ISBN 978-1-84413-102-0.
- ISBN 978-0-631-16053-3.
- Campbell, John and David Freeman. The Iron Lady: Margaret Thatcher, from Grocer's Daughter to Prime Minister (2011), 564pp; abridged version of Campbell's two-volume biography
- Carter, Neil. "The party politicisation of the environment in Britain" Party Politics, 12#6 (2006), pp. 747–67.
- Garnett, Mark; Simon Mabon; Robert Smith (2017). British Foreign Policy since 1945. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781317588993.
- Haq, Gary and Alistair Paul. Environmentalism since 1945 (2011)
- Harris, Kenneth, Attlee (1982), scholarly biography
- Harrison, Brian. Finding a Role?: The United Kingdom 1970–1990 (New Oxford History of England) (2011) excerpt and text search; online major scholarly survey
- Leventhal, Fred M., ed. Twentieth-century Britain: an encyclopedia (Peter Lang Pub Inc, 2002); 910pp.
- Marr, Andrew (2007). A History of Modern Britain. London: Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-4050-0538-8.
- Marr, Andrew. Elizabethans: How Modern Britain Was Forged (2021), covers 1945 to 2020..
- Morgan, Kenneth O. Britain since 1945: The People's Peace (2001).
- Panton, Kenneth J. and Keith A. Cowlard, eds. Historical Dictionary of the Contemporary United Kingdom (2008) 640 pp; biographies of people active 1979–2007
- Richards, David, Martin Smith, and Colin Hay, eds. Institutional Crisis in 21st Century Britain (Palgrave Macmillan, 2014)
- Sampson, Anthony. The Essential Anatomy of Britain: Democracy in Crisis (1992) online free
- Savage Mike. Identities and Social Change in Britain since 1940: The Politics of Method (Oxford UP, 2010)
- Sims, Paul David. "The Development of Environmental Politics in Inter-War and Post-War Britain" (PhD Dissertation, Queen Mary University of London, 2016) online; Bibliography of secondary sources, PP 312–26.
- Stephens, P. (1997). Politics and the Pound: The Tories, the Economy and Europe. London: Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-333-63297-0.
- Stewart, Graham. Bang! A History of Britain in the 1980s (2013) excerpt and text search
- Tomlinson, Jim (2000). The Politics of Decline: Understanding Postwar Britain. Longman. ISBN 9780582423688.
- Turner, Alwyn. Rejoice, Rejoice!: Britain in the 1980s (2010)
- Turner, Alwyn W. A Classless Society: Britain in the 1990s (2013).
Historiography
- Bevir, Mark; Rhodes, Rod A.W. (1998). "Narratives of 'Thatcherism'". West European Politics. 21 (1): 97–119. .
- Black, Lawrence (2012). "An Enlightening Decade? New Histories of 1970s' Britain". International Labor and Working-Class History. 82: 174–186. S2CID 144856938.
- Brooke, Stephen. "Living in ‘New Times’: Historicizing 1980s Britain." History Compass 12#1 (2014): 20-32.
- Jones, Harriet; Kandiah, Michael D. (1996). The Myth of Consensus: New Views on British History, 1945–64. Palgrave Macmillan UK. ISBN 978-1-349-24942-8.
- Marquand, David (1987). "The literature on Thatcher". Contemporary British History. 1 (3): 30–31. .
- Porion, Stéphane. "Reassessing a Turbulent Decade: the Historiography of 1970s Britain in Crisis." Études anglaises 69#3 (2016): 301-320. online
- Porter, Bernard. "‘Though Not an Historian Myself...' Margaret Thatcher and the Historians." Twentieth Century British History 5.2 (1994): 246–256.
- Soffer, Reba. History, historians, and conservatism in Britain and America: from the Great War to Thatcher and Reagan.. (Oxford UP, 2009).
Newspapers and primary sources
- "1980s Key Facts". Biz/ed. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "1990s Key Facts". Biz/ed. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "Key Facts on 1991". Biz/ed. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "Key Facts on 1993". Biz/ed. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "Key Facts on 1994". Biz/ed. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "26 April 1993: Recession over-it's official". On This Day 1950–2005. BBC. 15 April 2005. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "Past Elections-1997: Labour landslide ends Tory rule". BBC News. 15 April 2005. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- "Past Elections-1992: Tories Win Again Against Odds". BBC News. 5 April 2005. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- Thatcher, M. (25 May 1990). "Speech Opening Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research". Margaret Thatcher Foundation. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- Thatcher, M. (27 September 1988). "Speech to the Royal Society". Margaret Thatcher Foundation. Retrieved 12 December 2010.