why did labour lose the 1951 election

Why did Labour lose the 1951 election? | Mind Map - GoConqr administration would lead to Labour's election record in the 1930s was poor, as they were disorganised and divided. Liberals 6, Note how Labour actually achieved a 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. Jeremy Corbyn. The poor timing of the 1951 election can also be claimed to have weakened Labours position. spring of 52' due to the Kings tour of Australia it hit the party at a There are three main sub-categories for this answer; the Conservatives strengths, Labours weaknesses/ limitations, and uncontrollable factors. The Attlee governments of 1945 to 1951 can be divided into four key sections. One of the major issues Labour had to face was how to rebuild Britain following the end of the Second World War, it also had to face the decolonisation of the British Empire and the loss of key figures within the party due to age and illness by 1951. Indeed, after signing the Munich Agreement, Chamberlain was heralded as a hero: 'saving' the country from another bloody war. In his budget, the Chancellor, Hugh Gaitskell, sought to balance his budget by imposing charges on false teeth and spectacles. Gaitskell adopted a similarly pragmatic approach to Britains budgetary problems and kept typically socialist long-term economic planning to a minimum. 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. shortages, Korean War World economic e Bevanites and the Gaitsgillites. 25 October 1951 The ageing Conservative leader Winston Churchill won the 1951 election with a comfortable majority. British housewives Both clearly agree that the pre-war period was significant, however they differ on why it was significant. Labour lost the election to the party whose ideas it was preaching. What was the Conservatives election slogan in 1951? In 1951 Labour attained 48.8% of the vote, and the Conservatives only got 48% of the vote. The 1959 General Election gave the Conservatives their third successive victory, the first time that a party had won three successive general elections since Napoleonic times. In this respect, although Labout lost the 1951 election, it can be claimed that they only marginally lost popular support meaning, in my opinion, the most significant factor contributing to their loss was the mistiming of the election. Why did Labour win the 1945 election and lose in the 1951 election? The 1951 election ended the post-war Labour governments, put Labour into opposition for 13 years and marked the start of a decade of bitter internecine warfare in the party. This brought about a little unrest within working class support but it was the effect on middle class attitudes and the cracks opening among the Parliamentary partys support which began to harm electoral credibility. 1 He belonged to the first intake of students at the Ecole polytechnique in 1794 and went on to become an iron engineer. 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 1918 constitution that eventually emerged was a curious mix, unmatched on the continent: theoretically socialist in its commitment to public ownership via the 'old' Clause IV, but in reality gradualist, 'labourist' and in huge debt to the more conservative trade union movement. Beveridge aimed to create a minimum standard of living and full employment and believed the five evils blocking these aims and reconstruction were: Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness. However Pearce concludes that. The 1945-1946 period of Labour government sought to address some key difficulties facing the nation following World War II. Labour Party | History, Facts, Policies, & Leaders | Britannica So a better question is why did labour lose so many seats in '50. 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. 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. Iron and steel nationalisation After the shock of the 1945 election, Labour appointed Lord Woolton as their party chairman: he was central to the revitalisation of the Conservatives and reorganised the conservative party effectively. plural voting- 1948 Why did Labour win the 1945 election and lose in the 1951 election? This massive reform of the 1945-1946 period was dealt a blow in February 1947, when the government faced a fuel crisis. In contrast to the break-up of the MacDonald Labour government in 1931, there was no 'bankers' ramp' or dramatic and overwhelming financial crisis. Following their post-war election defeat, the Conservatives were able to make significant improvements to the party between 1945 and 1951. 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. Labour's Legacy - The Labour Party The election result was a disaster for Labour. Please read our, {"ad_unit_id":"App_Resource_Sidebar_Upper","resource":{"id":2798048,"author_id":348222,"title":"Why did Labour lose the 1951 election? Hi there, would you like to get such a paper? was welcomed by the electorate. It was not Churchill who lost the 1945 election, it was the ghost of Neville Chamberlain. called for He lost again, but was given one more opportunity in 1951 . Rather, the balance of payments problem forced the non-idealists within the leadership to face the necessary curtailing of public spending. Atlee became the deputy Prime Minister during the war. The outcome was widely credited to the deft materialism of Harold Macmillan, and the slogan `You've never had it so good', which the Conservatives, in fact, did not use. Sterling crisis 1966, devaluation 1967, tax rises, public spending cuts and rejection of the EEC application 1963. Pearce's reinterpretation argument makes the most sense because policies like appeasement were relatively popular at the time. Public transport -1948 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. This aim was ill-fated and in the eyes of many economists obviously exceeded the country's economic capacity. 3.7 billion loans US & Pearce's reinterpretation argument makes the most sense because policies like appeasement were relatively popular at the time. This aim was ill-fated and in the eyes of many economists , obviously exceeded the country's economic capacity, . Paul Addison argues that. The question as to why Labour won the 1945 election has been the source of much in depth study since the period. reduces to just 7 Mainly because the Brexit Party split off some of their voters. This is especially so when one considers the crises they faced in that year, making the 1945 blue-skies, New Jerusalem thinking incredibly difficult to sustain. The 1964 election was not a landslide victory like that of 1945. This brought about a little unrest within working class support but it was the effect on middle class attitudes and the cracks opening among the Parliamentary partys support which began to harm electoral credibility. As Prime Minister, he enlarged and improved social services and the public sector in post-war Britain, creating the National Health Service and nationalising major industries and public utilities. Dunkirk triggered many people to blame the conservatives and their previous leaders for appeasement. You need to log in to complete this action! 4.86: $1 to 2.80:$1, Rationing increasingly unpopular with middle classes, Eg. 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. The term was coined from a particular type of horse racing wherein the winning horse passes the final post and all the others are disqualified. In 1951 labour actually polled more votes than the conservatives and in 1945 Labour only polled 8% more than the Conservatives yet gained a landslide of seats. 20. century British politics had been dominated by the conservatives, and Labour had never formed a workable majority before 1945. These problems, however, would have been inherent to any government of Britain at the time, but the fact was, Labour were held accountable. The General Election, 1959 - Gresham College Politicians are often rejected by voters because they have failed in office. Here i looks at the reasons behind Labour's worst defeat in an election campaign since 1935. The split ran deep within the Labour party and consequently it was deeply weakened, so when it came to the 1951 election, Labour found it much harder to fight against the now united Conservatives who had been re-organisation under a new leader. sects ( religion/ groups), Issue in Iran with Oil efiniry nationalised, wasn't handles, Election results 1951 An Overlooked Reason Why Labour Lost In 1983 - Blogger In 1951 more people voted Labour than Conservative, yet the How Did The Petrov Affair Affect Australia | ipl.org 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. leadership remembered in a Georges Dufaud (1777-1852) was one of those ironmasters who benefited from the changes introduced by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire (Figure 1.1). Labour's popularity was also dented by their foreign policy, in granting sovereignty to some of Britain's most successful colonies Labour were seen as dissembling an empire that had taken hundreds of years to attain. Why did Labour lose the 1970 general election? by Lucy Nielsen - Prezi On a high turnout Labour's tally of votes had actually increased in absolute terms (to 13.9 million, compared to 13.2 million in the 1950 cent) than the Conservatives, though the Conservatives came out ahead in seats, Labour - 295 seats, Conservatives - 321 seats, Liberals - 6 seats In 1951 the Liberals put up 109 candidates, in 1945 they had put up 475.