power of the PM to dictate events

• what was the poll tax?

  a tax introduced by Thatcher which replaced Domestic rates. introduced in 1987
• what were the results of the poll tax?

  • riots in London - 200,000 protesters
  • people refused to pay, up to 30% in some areas
  • people refused to turn up to court hearings
  • the Labour party didn't support the non-payment campaign
  • Led to Thatcher being ousted
• did the HOC authorise the military action in Iraq?

  yes however 217 MPs voted against it
• What were the consequences of the decision to invade iraq?

  several members of the Labour Gov resigned

  millions of people took to the streets of London to voice their opposition
• who did the UK invade Iraq with?

  United States - George W Bush
• did the Labour Government have sufficient evidence that there were WOMD in iraq?

  no
• what did the Chilcot report say?

  Saddam Hussein posed 'no imminent threat' at the time of the attack which had been based on 'flawed intelligence'
• did May say that she was going to call a snap election when asked in 2016?

  no
• why did May decide to call a snap-election?

  • as an unelected leader, she wanted her own personal endorsement from voters to legitimise her position
  • she was convinced she needed her own mandate to push through Britain's exit from the EU
  • the opinion polls prior looked promising - 20% lead for the tories
• what were the consequences of May's snap election?

  • she had to form a confidence and supply agreement with the DUP
  • ministers such as BoJo resigned
  • she eventually resigned
• what is a similarity between the three case studies?

  each case involved decisions taken directly by and personally associated with the individual prime minister
• what is a similarity between the three case studies?

  each one seemed rational and logical at the outset
• give a similarity between the three case studies

  each case represented a gamble dash none had to be undertaken in response to a particular crises although the conservatives had for a while promised to reform domestic rates
• give a similarity between the three case studies

  in all of the cases the PM failed in the preliminary stages to consult widely and heed more closely the voices and caution within their party
• give a similarity between the three case studies

  each decision ended in failure and contributed significantly to each leaders resignation
• give a difference between the three case studies

  the poll tax was much more a conviction policy while the election was determined more by political and electoral considerations. the invasion of Iraq resulted from pressure from one of Britain's closest overseas allies
• give a difference between the three case studies

  the poll tax came at the tail end of a long established premiership whereas the 2017 election was early on in May's time as PM. The Iraq war was midway through Tony Blair's premiership
• give a difference between the three case studies

  the Poll Tax involved serious breaches of public order and violent protests while the Iraq war claimed the lives of a significant number of British servicemen and women