1a

• Conservatives


  Traditional party of middle and upper classes; part of wartime coalition with Liberal Party; needed to appeal to working class due to Representation of the People's Act in 1918; rebranded as a party of self-improvement through property ownership
• Liberals


  Traditional party of middle class and artisan working class; party of individual freedoms and social reform; deeply divided by war due to illiberal measures; many thought David Lloyd George had gotten too close to the Conservatives
• Labour


  Very new party formed in 1900 from the Labour Representation Council, representing trade unions and worker's rights; boost in votes due to most working class men being able to vote; refused to join wartime coalition
• Labour replaced Liberals as party of social reform


  Despite several social reforms, they formed two governments between 1924-31
• Liberals never take power again

  Due to the Representation of the People's Act and the official party split (Coalition/DLG Liberals vs Traditional Liberals)
• Representation of the People's Act

  Labour electorate swells with more unskilled working class able to vote for them; Tory electorate also swells with property-owning, middle-class, newly-enfranchised women voting for them
• Liberals split in 1924 election


  Vote share split, leading to loss of seats
• Tories


  • Good at adjusting to political climate; do not overtly punish Labour/trade unions as to not lose working class votes, helping sustain their position as majority party
• Tories rebrand and begin some welfare reforms
• 1st Labour government in 1924

  PM Ramsay MacDonald
• Labour victory in 1924 was a cause of concern for Tory newspapers such as The Times, who compared Labour to repressive Soviet Russia and suggested there were Soviet sympathisers in Cabinet, despite Labour's commitment to parliamentary democracy
• MacDonald and his government

  Had strained relations with the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party
• National Government (1931-45)


  Stable government formed during economic depression to tackle it; eventually Labour splits and one sect breaks away, despite beginning with a Labour PM (Ramsay MacDonald), splitting the Labour Party much like how the Liberal Party was split by the wartime coalition
• Policies of the National Government

  • 10% tariff on foreign goods
  • Reducing interest rates
  • Means test for welfare benefits
• Rise of Extremism


  Far Right (British Union of Fascist/Blackshirts, headed by Oswald Mosley) and Far Left (British Communist Party)
• Extremism fails due to lack of strong and/or widespread organisation, Britain's economic threat not as severe as other EU countries, and changes in the political landscape
• Consensus (1945-79)


  Nationalisation of key industries, full employment, welfare state (NHS, universal unemployment benefits)
• Despite mass of social reforms implemented

  Labour loses 1951 elections to Tories
• Tories adopt Labour attitudes to welfare reforms and accepts welfare benefits in place; dominate for 13 years
• Labour government returns in 1964, headed by Harold Wilson


  Successful at dealing with social issues, fails to tackle economic problems
• Edward Heath's Tory government (1970-74)


  Goes against consensus for first time in a few decades, tries to reduce state involvement in economy, cutting down welfare bill and trying to reduce union activity; faces industrial unrest and failure to tackle economic problems
• James Callaghan's Labour government (1974-79)

  Winter of Discontent and growing power of unions frustrated people, leading to Margaret Thatcher's election victory in 1979 and the end of post-war consensus