why did labour lose the 1951 election

However Pearce concludes that. Why didn't Labour win the election 1948 Representation of the People Act What was the name of the 1948 law which changed constituency boundaries Liberal Party What party saw their vote fall from 2.6 million to 730,556 Sets with similar terms POLS 315 Exam 3 67 terms Leiigit_Kae American Gov Unit 4 Exam 91 terms Alexis_Martyn45 The poor timing of the 1951 election can also be claimed to have weakened Labour's position. 25 October 1951 The ageing Conservative leader Winston Churchill won the 1951 election with a comfortable majority. Mr Churchill's Declaration of Policy to the Electorate. The government's 1945 lead over the Conservative Party shrank dramatically, and Labour was returned to power but with an overall majority reduced from 146 to just 5. The Conservatives voted against the creation of a centralised health service in 1946, preferring rather the idea of state provision of healthcare administered at local level. This is considered an important factor in Labour's victory by many historians Support for Labour in 1945 represented above all a reaction against pre-war Conservatism argues Adelman. 3.7 billion loans US & This was the fourth of five elections in the twentieth century where a party lost the popular vote, but won the most seats. Conservative (48.0%) This caused widespread discontent as even during the war, bread had not been rationed. The Conservative victory in 1951 is typically attributed either to the failures of Attlee's government - devaluation, the Bevanite revolt - or to the achievements of Churchill's opposition, including Lord Woolton's reforms and the acceptance of the "post-war consensus". In the 1992 election 11.5 million people voted Labour. However, in 1950, Labour won by a tiny majority of 5 seats and in 1951 the Conservatives won by a majority of 17. Their wartime experience in government was critical in catalysing trust and support for the party and its MPs who had proven themselves. Within the Cabinet, Gaitskells decision to expand the defence budget at the expense of domestic spending enraged health minister Nye Bevan in particular, who resigned as a response to the Korean deployment. Outlined in the report were: all working age people would pay a National Insurance tax, and Benefits would be paid to the sick, unemployed, retired or widowed. 2% interest why did labour lose the 1951 election. It is at this point that the switch from socialist idealism to pragmatic consolidation might be identified as a cause of voter disaffection. Please wait while we set up your subscription TurnItIn the anti-plagiarism experts are also used by: King's College London, Newcastle University, University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, WJEC, AQA, OCR and Edexcel, Business, Companies and Organisation, Activity, Height and Weight of Pupils and other Mayfield High School investigations, Lawrence Ferlinghetti: Two Scavengers in a Truck, Two Beautiful People in a Mercedes, Moniza Alvi: Presents from my Aunts in Pakistan, Changing Materials - The Earth and its Atmosphere, Fine Art, Design Studies, Art History, Crafts, European Languages, Literature and related subjects, Linguistics, Classics and related subjects, Structures, Objectives & External Influences, Global Interdependence & Economic Transition, Acquiring, Developing & Performance Skill, Sociological Differentiation & Stratification, The question as to why Labour won the 1945 election has been the source of much in depth study since the period. Aged - many were in 60s What seems stingingly ironic is that in 1951 the Labour party actually received the largest percentage of the vote than any other party had in Britain's history and still lost the election. In 1945 the Conservatives had suffered from being divided and disorganised, while Labour had been strong and united. Most obviously, because the campaigns importance is overshadowed by the larger, more influential issues. shortages, Korean War World economic There was. billion he had hoped for, Repayable at In his budget, the Chancellor, Hugh Gaitskell, sought to balance his budget by imposing charges on false teeth and spectacles. As Charmley so aptly put it, the government was exhausted in mind, body and manifesto commitments. Many of Labours intergral cabinet ministers had been in office since 1940 and now, a decade later, were cumbling under the strain of the the continuous post-war crises that plagued Britain. While ill health may have played its part in weakening the Labour party, the lack of enthusiasm put into manifesto commintments was by far more significant. Churchill however made a gross error in saying that Labour would need a Gestapo like organisation to enforce socialism upon Britain. prescription charges by Hugh The Conservatives voted against the creation of a centralised health service in 1946, preferring rather the idea of state provision of healthcare administered at local level. The 1945-1946 period of Labour government sought to address some key difficulties facing the nation following World War II. Unpopular policies like high taxes. Economic problems e.g. Labour's promises of social reforms won them many votes, however it was these promises which led to their failure in 1951, when many people believed that the promises hadn't been delivered. Also in both cases the campaigns were of negligible importance. Firstly, the party enacted most of its initial 1945 manifesto pledges in establishing the NHS, founding the Welfare State, and building one million new homes. The economy's recovery was further hindered by the short-sighted need to remain a world power. In 1945 Labour had won 11.99m (47.8%) of the vote, and went on to attain 13.95m (48.8%) of the vote in 51. Although there was some tangible degree of divisions within the party over the banality and unradical approach, with many backbenchers urging a return to the early zealousness for national change, it was not this issue which harmed the party most. The impact of the Petrov Affair will be seen to significantly alter the political landscape of Australia and providing the liberal government under Menzies an opportunity to reconfirm their anti-communist sentiment. You need to log in to complete this action! Britains involvement in the Korean War also enabled the Conservatives to play on Churchills war hero status. Why did Labour lose the 1951 election? So, while Labour won the popular vote, gaining large majorities in their constituencies, the Conservatives won the majority of seats, gaining narrow victories, but in more constituencies. disadvantage the Labour party however he did not postposne them These problems, however, would have been inherent to any government of Britain at the time, but the fact was, Labour were held accountable. keeping the NHS, Attractive party to businessmen The need for a better post war Britain was felt amongst all classes and Labour's support of the Beveridge Report brought widespread support. This is considered an important factor in Labour's victory by many historians , Support for Labour in 1945 represented above all a reaction against pre-war Conservatism, argues Adelman. The report was met by huge public enthusiasm and Labour's wholehearted backing. From the research Ive done, Ive attempted to form what I consider to be that clear answer. WW2) needed loans to sustain economy, Keynes 1945 secures The first-past-the-post system played a key role in both winning Labour the vote in 1945 and losing it in 1951. Labour weaknesses. As Labour struggled to legislate effectively, and following another badly-handled balance of payments crisis in the summer of 1951, Attlee dissolved Parliament in September and Labour subsequently lost - albeit narrowly - the October election. Overall, it was the first-past-the-post system that won Labour their 'landslide' victory in 1945 and in 1951 allowed the Conservatives to win despite polling less votes. Pre-war Conservatives were labelled Guilty Men by Labour, this was very influential in winning over public opinion for Labour who presented themselves as the only party able to prevent another war. fundamentals called for further In realising that the quality of life was far more important to the public than any other factor, the Conservatives promised to build 300,000 houses a year, although they did admit in their manifesto that not much could be done to lessen the strain of rationing in 1951. Working class voters, on the other hand, remained loyal to the Labour Party and the 1951 election saw Labour poll the highest aggregate popular vote ever achieved in Britain. While this gave them a temporary boost in the polls, it did nothing but hinder them in the long term. The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held twenty months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats. The electorate clearly did not see it this way though, believing that the Labour party had lied to them, this feeling of betrayal saw many voters return to the reliable Conservatives in the 1951 election. Then, the second ministry saw a fractious Parliamentary party being further divided over the Korean War and the advancement of the National Health Service, leading up to a comfortable Tory win in the October 1951 election. The year 1947 brought an abrupt end to the honeymoon, as the government was forced to shift focus from massive reform to crisis management in response to fuel and trade shortages. Increase in liberal votes in 1964 meant that conservative vote decreased, therefore labour required less votes to win. Cost of Living KOREAN WAR Austerity LINK TO COMPULSORY MILITARY SERVICE - cost of heating, clothing, education and food (and other necessities) was increasing; dissatisfaction amongst the people - defense spending increased whilst public spending decreased; led to NHS prescription charges This split was a key moment in the demise of Attlees government. Why did Labour win the 1945 election and lose in the 1951 election? On average in these 'red wall' constituencies, Labour lost about 2% to the Tories and about 7% to the Brexit Party. Labour - 295 seats, Conservatives - 321 seats, Liberals - 6 seats In 1951 the Liberals put up 109 candidates, in 1945 they had put up 475. Although there was some tangible degree of divisions within the party over the banality and unradical approach, with many backbenchers urging a return to the early zealousness for national change, it was not this issue which harmed the party most. Although this was not much in terms of the popular vote, Labour lost 78 seats and the Conservatives gained 101; Labour were left with a majority of just five seats. Politicians are often rejected by voters because they have failed in office. Economically the Labour government of 45-51 struggled, with the electorate all too aware of he post-war shortages, the continuing rationing, increased taxes, and the general dislike of austerity the feeling of being under the thumb of the Americans. Labour's manifesto was based around the Beveridge report and the Nationalisation of industries, ideas that had been tested during the war and were found to work. Attlee was aware that these changes to the voting system may Attlee's reputation rose during the 1945 electoral campaign. His reaction in a crisis is to threaten force. <p>The NHS had been established by the post-war Labour government in 1948. The year 1947 brought an abrupt end to the honeymoon, as the government was forced to shift focus from massive reform to crisis management in response to fuel and trade shortages. 'I think we've got 20 years of power ahead of us,' mused the newly-elected Labour MP for Smethwick. After his 1945 defeat, Churchill remained party leader and led the Conservatives into the following general election in February 1950. 1950 Surplus 297 million fell to Labour's promises of social reforms won them many votes, however it was these promises which led to their failure in 1951, when many people believed that the promises hadn't been delivered. um is there something wrong in these notes? Firstly, the party enacted most of its initial 1945 manifesto pledges in establishing the NHS, founding the Welfare State, and building one million new homes. Named Let Us Face the Future, it emphasised that Labour were the only party that could be trusted to deliver a strong Britain and Beveridge's plans. Bill Shorten's political career ended last night but Morrison's is just beginning. Gaitskell had imposed upon the health service prescription charges for glasses and false teeth, which to Bevan and other NHS idealists represented the betrayal of NHS founding principals. conservatives into a modern party, Nevertheless, the war was clearly more important in raising Atlee's reputation among Britons because Attlee was effectively completely in charge of the homefront for the duration of the war. spring of 52' due to the Kings tour of Australia it hit the party at a Indeed, Robert Pearce claims it seems very unlikely indeed that the campaign was crucial. Each party's history had a role in both 1951 and 45, the conservative led National Government of the 1930s were blamed for the depression, appeasement and delayed rearmament in 1945. Labour's achievements, or rather what they did not achieve, can be linked as to why they lost: they had arguably successfully set up a welfare state but had also induced an economic crisis. The Labour Party was created in 1900: a new party for a new century. The newly recruited young members dramatically contrasted with the aging Labour cabinet and presented the Conservatives as a rising party fit to govern. Thus, it may have The Bevanites, being more left-wing, wanted to focus Britains resources on further nationalisation of industry. In 1945 Labour had won 11.99m (47.8%) of the vote, and went on to attain 13.95m (48.8%) of the vote in 51. authority, 1950-1951 labelled as an a8a56820-44a0-4a9a-8187-fafb017abb00 (image/jpg), 8f36ad5d-3853-456a-9ff6-bdaabf691996 (image/jpg), c55c2574-fee6-48c9-ba8e-44fc34928bdf (image/jpg), e49a14d7-993b-49bd-9e9f-d594e2a70129 (image/jpg), 513b94d5-0e2d-4180-b58e-d389eb13cc5f (image/jpg), dd237af4-9d8e-494a-8b1e-c60544884a89.gif (image/gif), 40b0897e-0340-4b7e-af81-65768eaa4fb8 (image/jpg), 0ae72221-e96f-4b35-ad23-e78e4f949912 (image/png), Daily Express: "while he knew But it was not. Divisions over appeasement, foreign policy and rearmament deeply weakened Labour. This divided party had stood no chance against the organised, well-funded Conservatives. This people's war was very beneficial to Labour in warming people to socialist ideologies, and their belief on the war being, not just a fight against the fascist Germany, but a struggle for a prosperous post-war Britain. 419 million defecit was yet again in the surplus, Disagreements over Labour had made so many promises before the 1945 election that peoples hopes were set too high, many felt that Labour failed to deliver. Chamberlain's actions before the war had indeed lost the Conservatives much respect and had made them look weak to many people who saw Labour as the only reliable alternative. Extremely cold weather met with insufficient stockpiles of coal, and much industry ground to a halt as a result. We have detected that Javascript is not enabled in your browser. which led to more sophisticated While Labour managed to retain much working class support largely because of the role class identification was playing in determining partisan support at this time the middle class had quickly become disaffected. The Attlee Labour government of 1945-51 ended more with a whimper than with a bang. It had several effects, all of which were harmful in both the long and short term. Why did the Labours lose even their historic strongholds? Both clearly agree that the pre-war period was significant, however they differ on why it was significant. We provide reliable homework help online and custom college essay service. The population was also swelling, not to mention the return of service men and women from abroad, and the total number of properties in Britain had fallen by over 700,000 due to bomb damage. This split caused to distinct groups to form within Labour; the Bevanites and the Gaitsgillites.

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