Explain why the Conservatives lost the election of 1905
Explain why the Conservatives lost the election of 1905
The Liberal government took office in December 1905, before securing a popular response to the January 1906 General Election. Arguably, this sudden Liberal government was more to do with the weaknesses of the coalition administration of the Conservatives and the Liberal Unionists, than the success of the Liberals. It is possible that Balfour did inherit political weaknesses from Lord Salisbury, his uncle, but he didn’t do the Conservative party any justice in his term of office (1902-1905).
A predominant reason why the Conservatives lost the election of 1905 was due to the many unsuccessful policies implemented. Most notably, the Aliens Act of 1905 meant that more foreign immigrants, including 50,000 poor Jews, entered Britain because of the ‘Open Door’ policy, as Balfour and his government assumed that there would be more economical potential. They were vastly known as the ‘Alien Paupers’ as it caused millions of unemployed Britons and also undisputed angst between the locals and the foreigners. Understandably, the Conservatives lost the election because many disliked the fact that the British people couldn’t get jobs due to lenient immigrations policies. Or rather, it was viewed as lenient for all there were restrictions.