The flame of British Liberalism burns steady and brighter: A timeline from 1945

pipisme · Jun 5, 2021

The Stirling and Falkirk by-election, caused by the death of Malcolm Macpherson (Labour) took place on 16 September 1971. It was a three way contest between Labour, Conservative and SNP. The Labour candidate was Gregor Mackenzie who had lost his Rutherglen seat in the 1968 general election. The SNP candidate was Winifred Ewing. Labour held the seat, but their majority was reduced from 14.7% over Conservative to 8,3% over SNP. A week later the Widnes by-election, caused by the death of James MacColl (Labour) was easily held for Labour by James Dunn, who was MP for Liverpool Kirkdale from 1961 to 1968.

The elevation to the peerage of Arthur Vere Harvey (Conservative) meant there was a by-election in Macclesfield. This was held on 30 September 1971. It was won by the Conservatives, but their majority over Labour fell from 20.0% to 1.6%. Here are the percentage votes for each party (1968 general election):
Nicholas Winterton (Conservative): 33.9 (48.0)
Labour: 32.3 (28.0)
Liberal: 31.9 (24.0)
Others (2): 1.9 (n/a).
The swing from Conservative to Labour was 9.2%.

pipisme · Jun 9, 2021

The Jackson Report on the future of the Railways was published in September 1970. It proposed that about one-third of the total mileage be cut, with the closure of three thousand miles of track and two thousand stations. It was backed by the Conservative government and party, but stromgly opposed by the Labour and Liberal parties.

sarahz · Jun 9, 2021

pipisme said:
The Jackson Report on the future of the Railways was published in September 1970. It proposed that about one-third of the total mileage be cut, with the closure of three thousand miles of track and two thousand stations. It was backed by the Conservative government and party, but stromgly opposed by the Labour and Liberal parties.

See those marginals fall in by elections to come

pipisme · Jun 11, 2021

In October 1971, 53 Labour MPs defied a three-line whip to vote in favour of a motion approving in principle the government's decision to enter the Common Market (European Economic Community - EEC). In February 1972, 12 Labour MPs voted in favour of the second reading of the European Communities Bill, in defiance of a three-line whip.

The Prime Minister, Reginald Maudling, was in favour of Britain joining the EEC, but was not as fanatical and single minded about the issue as Edward Heath was in OTL.
The Foreign Secretary was the Earl of Home, and Barbara Castle was the shadow Foreign Secretary. James Callaghan wanted to keep the Labour party united on the issue. In 1972 he pledged that a Labour government would hold a referendum on Britain's membership of the EEC.

In the Southwark by-election on 4 May 1972, caused by the resignation of Ray Gunter )Labour), Jo Richardson held the seat for Labour. She had lost her Hornchurch seat in the 1968 general election.

pipisme · Jun 13, 2021

Enoch Powell resigned from the cabinet as Minister of Education in February 1972, before the second reading of the European Communities Bill. He voted against the bill in all its stages. Maudling promoted Sir Keith Joseph from Chief Secretary to the Treasury to Minister of Education, and Richard Wood from Financial Secretary to the Treasury to Chief Secretary. Peter Walker was appointed Financial Secretary.

In the shadow cabinet elections in early November 1972, the successful candidates in order of votes received were as follows:
1. Peter Shore
2. Fred Peart
3. Michael Foot
4. Anthony Greenwood
5. Harold Wilson
6. Shirley Williams
7. Anthony Greenwood
8. Barbara Castle
9. Cledwyn Hughes
10. Reginald Prentice
11. Tom Fraser
12. Eric Heffer.

The Uxbridge by-election caused by the death of Charles Curran (Conservative) was held on 7 December 1972. It was won by Manuela Sykes for Labour by a majority 2.1% over Conservative. In the 1968 general election, the Conservative majority over Labour was 8.8%. Sykes had been a member of the Liberal Party, and a Liberal camdidate in several elections. She resigmed from the party in March 1967 in opposition to its advocacy of Britain joiniing the EEC.

pipisme · Jun 14, 2021

In 1970 Enoch Powell, the Minister of Education, ended the provision of school milk for children over seven years old.

Terence O'Neill, the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, called a general election for 2 October 1970 with the intention of improving his position in the Northern Ireland House of Commons. The number of seats won by each party in the election were as follows [1969 general election]:
Ulster Unionist [Pro O'Neill]: 23 [25]
Ulster Unionist [Anti O'Neill]: 12 [11]
Social Democratic and Labour: 8 [n/a]
Nationalist: 4 [5]
Northern Ireland Labour: 2 [4]
Protestant Unionist: 2 [n/a]
People's Democracy: 1 [1]
[ Independent Nationalist: 3 ]
[ Republican Labour: 2]
[ Liberal: 1 ]
-----------------------------------
Total: 52 [52}
---------------------------------
O'Neill lost his Bannside seat to the Reverend Ian Paisley (Protestant Unionist]. He resigned as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party and Prime Minister on 3 October. On 8 October, UIster Unionist MPs elected Brian Faulkner as their leader, and he became Prime Minister.

In March 1972, after Bloody Sunday on 30 January 1972. the British government suspended the Northern Ireland government and parliament [Stormont] and imposed direct rule on the province. Maudling promoted Ian Gilmour from Minister of State Home Office to the new post of Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Callaghan appointed Merlyn Rees as shadow Northern Ireland Secretary.

pipisme · Jun 15, 2021

A general election had to take place in the United Kingdom in 1973, before 14 May which was five years after Parliament assembled after the 1968 general election. There was much press speculation as to the date of the election. According to well informed sources, Tory Party workers did not want an election on 3 May, the date of borough and county council elections, because a general election would take activists and resources from local elections. Easter Sunday was 22 April. The most likely dates for the election were thought to be 5 or 12 April.

On Monday 12 March a statement from 10 Downing Street was issued to the media, stating that a general election would take place on 12 April. Parliament would be dissolve on 23 March, and nominations close on 2 April and the new Parliament assemble on 24 April.

pipisme · Jun 15, 2021

There had been a substantial redistribution of seats with the number of MPs increasing from 630 to 635. There were major boundary changes in 325 constituencies and minor boundary alterations in 90 constituencies. The voting age had been teduced from 21 to 18.

In a major speech in Birmingham on 7 April, five days before polling day. Enoch Powell advocated voting Labour, because a Labour government would give people an opportunity to vote on Britain's membership of the EEC. He said that this was the most important issue in the election. Some historians and commentators have argued that this speech was the most significant event in the election campaign. In another speech two days later, he urged people to vote Labour.

pipisme · Jun 17, 2021

The result of the general election on 12 April 1973 was a Labour majority of ten over all parties. The number of seats won by each party in the House of Commons were as follows (May 1968 general election):
Labour: 322 (268)
Conservative: 275 (342)
Liberal: 16 (16)
Ulster Unionist: 7 (n/a - included with Conservative)
Scottish National: 6 (1)
Vanguard Progressive Unionist: 3 (n/a)
Plaid Cymru: 2 (- )
Democratic Unionist: 1 (n/a)
Social Democratic and Labour: 1 (n/a)
Independent Labour: 1 (n/a)
Speaker: 1 (1)
(Republican Labour: 1)
(Unity: 1)
----------------------
Total: 635 (630)
----------------------

pipisme · Jun 18, 2021

The percentage votes for each party in the general election were as follows (1968 general election):
Labour: 38.1 (37.8)
Conservative: 35.6 (42.3)
Liberal: 20.7 (16.9)
Others: 5.5 (3.0)
The Liberals were disappointed with the result. Although their vote had increased by 3.8%, their number of MPs was still sixteen. They gained Aberdeenshire West, Chippenham. Isle of Wight, and Truro, and won the new seat of Hazel Grove. But lost Cheadle, and Ross and Cromarty to Conservative, and Birmingham Ladywood, Caithness and Sutherland, and Greenock to Labour. They had several close second places. The Liberals did not gain Berwick-on-Tweed, and Isle of Ely from Conservative, because unlike in OTL they did not have by-election boosts in these seats. So Alan Beith and Clement Freud were not elected. But David Penhaligon won Truro.

The SNP gained Aberdeenshire East, Argyll, Banff, and Moray and Nairn from Conservative, and Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire from Labour. However they did not take Dundee East from Labour, because they did not have a by-election boost in that constituency.

Dick Taverne was not deselected by his Putney Constituency Party, as was in Lincoln in OTL, so he had not left the Labour Party. Lincoln stayed Labour.

pipisme · Jun 18, 2021

The Liberal Party won the following sixteen seats in the general election: Aberdeenshire West, Bodmin, Cardiganshire, Chippenham, Colne Valley, Cornwall North, Devon North, Hazel Grove, Inverness-shire, Isle of Wight, Montgomery, Orkney and Shetland, Orpington, Rochdale, Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles, Truro.

Archie Macdonald, who was Liberal MP for Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles since 1945, retired at the general election. David Steel was elected Liberal MP for the constituency. Ronnie Fraser was elected for Aberdeenshire West. [1] Nancy Seear held Rochdale for the Liberals.

[1] For Fraser see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronnie_Fraser

pipisme · Jun 19, 2021

Callaghan appointed his cabinet on 13 and 14 April 1973. The members of the cabinet were as follows:
Prime Minister: James Callaghan
Lord Chancellor: Lord Mishcon
Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons: Michael Foot.
Lord Privy Seal: Lord Shepherd
Chancellor of the Exchequer: Denis Healey
Foreign and Commonwealth Relations Secretary: Barbara Castle
Home Secretary: Edward Short
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: Frederick Peart
Defence Secretary: Roy Mason
Secretary of State for Education and Science: Jennie Lee
To be continued.

pipisme · Jun 19, 2021

Cabinet (continued):
Secretary of State for Employment: Anthony Greenwood
Secretary of State for Energy: Eric Varley
Secretary of State for Environment: Peter Shore
Secretary of State for Industry: Eric Heffer
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster: Harold Wilson
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland: Merlyn Rees
Minister of Overseas Development: Reginald Prentice
Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection: Shirley Williams
Secretary of State for Scotland: Tom Fraser
Secretary of State for Social Security: Stan Orme
Secretary of State for Trade and President of Board of Trade: Anthony Crosland
Secretary of State for Transport: John Diamond
Secretary of State for Wales: Cledwyn Hughes.

pipisme · Jun 20, 2021

I have made the following amendments to my previous two posts
Foreign and Commonwealth Relations Secretary: Barbara Castle
Secretary of State for Education and Science: Jennie Lee
Secretary of State for Trade and President of Board of Trade: Anthony Crosland.

Ministers not in the cabinet and selected junior ministers appointed 15 to 17 April 1973:
Attorney-General: Samuel Silkin
Solicitor-General: Peter Archer
Paymaster-General: Edmund Dell
Minister of State Treasury: Harold Lever
Chief Secretary Treasury: Roy Jenkins
Financial Secretary Treasury: Dick Taverne
Parliamentary Secretary Secretary Treasury (Government Chief Whip): Bob Mellish
Minister of State Foreign Office: David Ennals
Minister of State Home Office: Paul Rose
Minister of State Department of Employment: Walter Johnson
Minister of State Department of Industry: Tony Benn
Minister of State Scottish Office: John Smith.

pipisme · Jun 21, 2021

Among the legislation proposed in the Queen's Speech on 1 May 1973, were the repeal of the Housing Finance Act, with its compulsory rent increases for council tensnts, and the repeal of the Industrial Relations Act.

In his budget on 8 May, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Denis Healey, increased pensions and other benefits, and brought in food subsidies. He also raised personal and child tax allowances. However he also increased the standard rate of income tax from 30 to 33 percent, and the highest rate of tax from 75 to 80 percent, and increased corporation tax.

Because of the small Labour majority, only ten over all parties, commentators generally considered Reginald Maudling's position as leader of the Tory Party to be safe, But if the Tories lost the next general election, he would soon be gone as party leader.

pipisme · Jun 23, 2021

The Conservatives held the Isle of Ely, and Ripon by-elections on 26 July 1973, but with reduced majorities. In Isle of Ely, Clement Freud reduced the Conservative majority from 14.5% over Labour to 9.3% over Liberal. In Ripon, David Austick cut the Conservative majority over Liberal from 34.1% to 16.3%.

The elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly took place on 2 August 1973. Voting was by the Single Transferable Vote in multi-member constituencies. The number of Assembly members elected for each party were as follows:
Ulster Unionist (Pro Assembly); 23
Social Democratic and Labour: 22
Alliance: 8
Democratic Unionist: 7
Ulster Unionist (Anti Assembly): 7
Vanguard: 7
West Belfast Loyalist Coalition: 2
Northern Ireland Labour: 1
Independent Unionist: 1
--------------------
Total: 78 (78)
------------------

pipisme · Jun 25, 2021

Antony Lambton, the Conservative MP for Berwick-upon-Tweed and a former junior minister in the Department of Defence, resigned from the House of Commons on 22 May 1973. He had been photographed in bed with a prostitute, and when the police searched his home they found a small quantity of cannabis. The subsequent by-election was held on 8 November 1973. The result was that Alan Beith gained the seat for the Liberal Party from Conservative by a majority of 4.7%,. In the April 1973 general election, Lambton had a majority of 15.1% over Liberal.

There were three other by-elections on 8 November, all caused by the death of the sitting MPs. The Conservatives easily won their safe seats of Edinburgh North, and Hove. Margo MacDonald won Glasgow Govan for the SNP by a majority of 2,8% over Labour. In the April general election the Labour majority over SNP was 32.3%.
MacDonald was the SNP candidate in the general election. Here are the percentage votes for each candidate (general election):
Margo MacDonald (SNP): 40.6 (19.2)
Harry Selby (Labour): 37.8 (51.5)
Conservative: 12.3 (18.8)
Liberal: 9.3 (10.5).
The Labour majority over all parties in the House of Commons was down from ten to eight.

pipisme · Jun 26, 2021

Immediately after Callaghan appointed Barbara Castle Foreign Secretary, she went to Brussels to renegotiate the terms of British entry to the European Economic Community (EEC) which had been agreed by the Maudling government. But the EEC negotiators were adamant that the Treaty of Rome was sacrosanct, and they made only a few minor concessions,

When Castle returned to London, she told the Cabinet that in her opinlon Britain should leave the EEC. However after an all day meeting at Chequers, the cabinet voted by 14 votes to 9 votes that the government should recommend that Britain should stay in the EEC in the forthcoming referendum. (1) The following ministers voted in favour of staying in the EEC: Callaghan, Mishcon, Shepherd, Healey, Short, Mason, Varley, Wilson, Rees, Prentice, Williams, Crosland, Diamond, Hughes.

These ministers voted for Britaim to leave the EEC: Foot, Castle, Peart, Lee, Greenwood, Shore, Heffer, Fraser, Orme.

(1) In OTL the vote by the Wilson cabinet was 16 to 7 in favour of Britain staying in the EEC.

pipisme · Jun 28, 2021

The Referendum Bill which provided for a referendum on British membership of the EEC (Common Market), fixed the date of the referendum for Thursday 4 July 1974.
James Callaghan gave cabinet ministers the freedom to campaign for or against British mrmbership of the EEC.

Barbara Castle wrote about the referendum campaign against the EEC in her autobiography Fighting All The Way , London: Macmillan, 1993. Her proposal made at a meeting of anti EEC cabinet ministers, that they should campaign as a group under the heading of Cabinet Ministers against the Market, was agreed. Peter Shore, the Environment Secretary, was given the job of drawing up a joint statement for them to issue at a press conference opening their campaign. (1) She wrote that the group had well-packed public meetings, and that they met in each other's homes.

Although Callaghan and the Conservative leader, Maudling, were in favour of Britain staying in the EEC, they were not Euro enthusiasts. Castle wrote in her autobiography that Callaghan was not a European visionary. Also that Anthony Crosland had "sat on the fence in our Common Market discussions in Cabinet." Shirley Williams and Edward Heath were the most pro European cabinet minister and shadow cabinet minister

The result of the referendum was as follows:
Yes to Britain staying in the EEC: 56.48%
No to Britain staylng in the EEC: 43.52%.
The result in the nations of the UK were:
England:
Yes: 57.9%
No: 42.1%
Northern Ireland:
No: 58.56%
Yes: 41.44%
Scotland:
No: 52.33%
Yes: 47.67%
Wales:
Yes: 54.05%
No: 45.95%.

(1) In OTL this task was given to Anthony Benn, but he was not a cabinet minister in this TL.

pipisme · Jun 29, 2021

In the referendum the counting areas were the English and Welsh counties, and the Scottish regions. Northern Ireland was treated as a single counting area. All the English counties voted Yes, as did all the Welsh counties except Mid Glamorgan which voted No. The following Scottish regions voted No: Fife, Highland, Shetland, Strathclyde, Western Isles.

The following political parties advocated a Yes vote: Alliance, Conservative, Liberal, Social Democratic and Labour, Vanguard.
A No vote was advocated by these parties: Communist, Democratic Unionist, National Front, Official Sinn Fein, Plaid Cymru, Provisional Sinn Fein, Scottish National, Ulster Unionist. The Labour Party was officially neutral.

The result of the referendum was a clear victory for Yes. But with Scotland and Northern Ireland voting No, there much comment and speculation about what that would mean for those two nations.