Conservative Dominance

• Post war consensus: Idea that generally after the war, both parties agreed on certain amount of government intervention

  1. Britain should have some industries nationalised
  2. Britain shouldn't make cuts to welfare or health benefits
  3. Full employment was vital
• Areas of consensus:

  Human nature : Selfish, self serving and aspirational

  Individual : Should be protected and given freedom

  Private property : Extension of individual

  Capitalism : Accumulation of wealth through generation of private wealth ---->

  1. Free market
  2. Trickle down
  3. Equity restrictions - welfare state paid for via taxation
• Areas of disagreement:

  Sovereign is essential to working economy

  Private Property: protected by state, private charity

  Modern: Free market

  Traditional/ Moderate: mixed economy

  New right: Libertarian, no state intervention in economy
• Economic growth?

  2.3%
• What does GDP stand for?

  Gross Domestic Product
• What is GDP?

  Measure of a country's economy and how successful it is
• How can GDP be calculated?

  1. Total value of goods and services in that country
  2. Income of population
  3. What everyone has spent
• What does GDP not tell us?

  Doesn't tell us how income is spread across a population

  Doesn't tell us the population size

  Doesn't differentiate spending meaning there are some things that contribute to it
• What does GNP stand for?

  Gross National Product
• What is GNP?

  Measure of a country's economy including its international trade and how successful it is
• How is GNP different from GNP?

  GNP includes GDP but adds investments earnt from abroad by individuals
• Butskellism

  Butler was the Chancellor of the Exchequer

  His policies were similar to High Gaitskell - public ownership , social welfare and personal liberty
• Stop go policy

  where periods of rapid economic growth (go) were curtailed by restrictive measures to prevent inflation (stop), causing fluctuating economic cycles.
• 13 wasted years

  British trade 25-15%

  Conservatives had a period of economic growth

  End of Korean war - money spent on trade as opposed to defence -increasing GDP

  Government criticised for failing to modernise staple industries - could've increased productivity and income. INSTEAD focused on foreign investment and sterling area
• People were better off in 1950s:

  1951: wage £8.30 -- 1064: wage £18.30

  Credit increase

  Income tax cut by conservatives

  354,000 homes built

  Homeownership 25% before WW2. 44% by 1964
• People were less well off in 1950s:

  Britain accused of stop go approach

  Stagflation

  Balance of payments deficit

  Government failed to invest heavily enough in industrial research
• Success

  High level of employment : 1951-64

  1953 Korean war ended

  Some industries - aircraft manufacture , cars, chemicals expanded

  More credit available for people to achieve a higher standard of living

  Roads built + motorway system

  Two income families

  Welfare spending on pensions created demand for goods, services

  Opening of new factories

  1952-55 Housing development - 50%