How revolutionary was Thatcherism?

How revolutionary was Thatcherism? The result of 1975 leadership election for the Conservative Party heralded a new era in right wing politics. Margaret Thatcher was not only in control of a male dominated and male orientated party but she had brought with her a new ideology that is best described by political theorists as Thatcherism. The British economy and state was transformed between 1979 and 1990 as 'she maximised her power to achieve the things she wanted'1. There is a dispute however as to whether the period of Thatcherism was a revolution of the British State or if it was more of a reaction to Labour Socialism that had taken hold of society in the 1970s. Furthermore there is a belief that Thatcher's revolution was more within the Conservative Party, providing it with a new sense of direction, rather than on Britain as a whole. It is these notions that I intend to analyse before drawing a conclusion as to what extent Thatcherism was revolutionary. Throughout Thatcher's leadership of the Conservative Party it was not uncommon for her opponents to claim that 'she was not really a Conservative at all'2, as a result of her transformation of it. Political observers are unclear as to whether the changes to the party were actually the rise of a new right or just a ideological return to the grass roots of Victorian politics, which is the judgement of one political

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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