This split was a key moment in the demise of Attlees government. Indeed, Robert Pearce claims it seems very unlikely indeed that the campaign was crucial, Paul Addison, however, argues that the campaign was important because . Attlee's downfall: why did Labour lose the 1951 General Election? higher percentage of votes The caretaker government, led by Churchill, was heavily defeated. So, at the 1950 election there was a 2.9% swing against Labour. The 1964 election was not a landslide victory like that of 1945. The Bevanites, being more left-wing, wanted to focus Britains resources on further nationalisation of industry. Labour's achievements, or rather what they did not achieve, can be linked as to why they lost: they had arguably successfully set up a welfare state but had also induced an economic crisis. Just by losing a core of middle class voters, Labour lost a great many marginal contests and most particularly in the well-to-do constituencies of southern and south-eastern England. To gain an understanding of the election one must study the context surrounding the election. Sterling crisis 1966, devaluation 1967, tax rises, public spending cuts and rejection of the EEC application 1963. Why then, did Labour go on to lose so many seats in 1950 before losing the General Election in 1951? People had lost trust in the conservatives and blamed them for Britains military short-comings, and this was important for Labours rise in support. Paul Addison, however, argues that the campaign was important because Attlee's reputation rose during the 1945 electoral campaign. After the shock of the 1945 election, Labour appointed Lord Woolton as their party chairman: he was central to the revitalisation of the Conservatives and reorganised the conservative party effectively. Iron and steel nationalisation 'I think we've got 20 years of power ahead of us,' mused the newly-elected Labour MP for Smethwick. The popularity of the 1942 Beveridge Report, which laid much of the groundwork for the establishment of the NHS and the Welfare State, was an endorsement of Labour politics. Labour's promises of social reforms won them many votes, however it was these promises which led to their failure in 1951, when many people believed that the promises hadn't been delivered. Under the head "Peace", the Labour manifesto said: "The Tory (Conservative) still thinks in terms of Victorian imperialism and colonial exploitation. The Road Manifesto 1950 accepted Labour 295 (48.8%) Bankruptcy in 1808 did not prevent him from enjoying later success, with the backing of senior officials and . Concerns about the permissive society e.g. Each party's history had a role in both 1951 and 45, the conservative led National Government of the 1930s were blamed for the depression, appeasement and delayed rearmament in 1945. Yet to limit the debate to these factors neglects the . Also during the 1930s Britain suffered the great depression, which weakened the Conservatives reputation considerably due to their domination of the National Government. 25 October 1951 The ageing Conservative leader Winston Churchill won the 1951 election with a comfortable majority. Gaitskell and Morrison (Deputy Prime Minister) both doubted whether Labour would be able to defeat the Conservatives in 1951, owing to their loss of seats in the 1950 election. Paul Addison argues that 1940 was the year when the foundations of political power shifted decisively leftwards for a decade By the autumn of 1942 a major upheaval in public opinion had taken place. People had lost trust in the conservatives and blamed them for Britains military short-comings, and this was important for Labours rise in support. Labour Party, British political party whose historic links with trade unions have led it to promote an active role for the state in the creation of economic prosperity and in the provision of social services. Labour's popularity was also dented by their foreign policy, in granting sovereignty to some of Britain's most successful colonies Labour were seen as dissembling an empire that had taken hundreds of years to attain. On a high turnout Labour's tally of votes had actually increased in absolute terms (to 13.9 million, compared to 13.2 million in the 1950 cent) than the Conservatives, though the Conservatives came out ahead in seats, The Conservative victory in 1951 is typically attributed either to the failures of Attlee's government - devaluation, the Bevanite revolt - or to the achievements of Churchill's opposition, including Lord Woolton's reforms and the acceptance of the "post-war consensus". In 1951 Winston Churchill's Conservative party, won the general election, and this would be the start of 13 years of Conservative rule pning three prime ministers. Then, as the Cripps years failed to bring an end to food scarcities and food queues, Labours perceived impact upon the national way of life was minimal to voters in the most crucial swinging constituencies. Paul Addison argues that. In addition, after the Korean War broke out in 1950, Britain decided to rearm. Before the war, Labour were all too often seen as inexperienced and even unpatriotic due to their left wing ideologies. Just over a year later, with the Labour government in deep crisis about a number of ill-conceived policies, yet another election was called. Named Let Us Face the Future, it emphasised that Labour were the only party that could be trusted to deliver a strong Britain and Beveridge's plans. The 1946 National Insurance Act was also a key domestic reform of the Attlee government. CONSERVATISM, The industrial charter of 1947 & This Is 20. century British politics had been dominated by the conservatives, and Labour had never formed a workable majority before 1945. The 1918 constitution that eventually emerged was a curious mix, unmatched on the continent: theoretically socialist in its commitment to public ownership via the 'old' Clause IV, but in reality gradualist, 'labourist' and in huge debt to the more conservative trade union movement. Economically the Labour government of 45-51 struggled, with the electorate all too aware of he post-war shortages, the continuing rationing, increased taxes, and the general dislike of austerity the feeling of being under the thumb of the Americans. These problems, however, would have been inherent to any government of Britain at the time, but the fact was, Labour were held accountable. From the research Ive done, Ive attempted to form what I consider to be that clear answer. However Pearce concludes that. Morisson, the Deputy Prime Minister, believed that The very honesty and simplicity of the campaign helped enormously. In the summer of 1950, the Korean War broke out. Under Labour, rationing continued, with further dried egg and bread rationing introduced in 1946. Labour had problems with trade unions- more strikes in the country. Conservatives 290, 1950-51 Labour were in office It was not Churchill who lost the 1945 election, it was the ghost of Neville Chamberlain. prescription charges by Hugh Looking at the Labour government in these four sections of reform, of crisis, of consolidation and of division helps us to see where the party lost its huge majority. Atlee used this as an opportunity to emphasise that although Churchill was a great wartime leader he was not such a good domestic politician. Resource summary. The consequences of entering the Korean War in June 1950 also contributed to Labours downfall. While it cannot be disputed that Labour kept their campaign simple, it would be ill-advised to declare that it helped enormously. how the radical Labour This large Parliamentary shift, in the face of an unremarkable swing in the popular vote, can be attributed partly to Labours loss of the middle class vote. Clement Attlee was leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955, and served as Britain's Prime Minister from 1945 to 1951. Evidently, the Conservatives were punished in 1945, when they were lucky to not have been in 1935 and, arguably, if elections had taken place in 1940, Labour may have won. Following the 1966 General Election, the Labour Party's Home Policy Committee observed that the party had, "for the first time, obtained a majority of the female vote" and remarked, "it would be very satisfactory if we could retain it." Developments during the war made a considerable contribution towards the shift to the left, with more support for collectivism and rationing. Conservative (48.0%) America sought the support of her allies in fighting the North Korean communists, and Britain committed troops to assist her. Britain's involvement in the Korean War had not been a popular decision. Indeed, Robert Pearce claims it seems very unlikely indeed that the campaign was crucial. Explanation: Technicalities. Once more, it was the objection of the middle class voters to austere conditions which brought about the Parliamentary swing. The pre-war period was significant because, during the war, it was reinterpreted. Its formation was the result of many years of struggle by working class people, trade unionists and socialists, united by the goal of working class voices represented in British Parliament. This is especially so when one considers the crises they faced in that year, making the 1945 blue-skies, New Jerusalem thinking incredibly difficult to sustain. After researching the topic thoroughly, I Would argue the main reason Labour lost in 51 was . The campaign is all too often seen as the most important factor in Labour's landslide victory in 1945, however it is of less importance than the war or their policies, for example. As Labour struggled to legislate effectively, and following another badly-handled balance of payments crisis in the summer of 1951, Attlee dissolved Parliament in September and Labour subsequently lost albeit narrowly the October election. Indeed, after signing the Munich Agreement, Chamberlain was heralded as a hero: 'saving' the country from another bloody war. A defeated conservative MP at the time, Macmillan, claimed that It was not Churchill who lost the 1945 election, it was the ghost of Neville Chamberlain. party opposed to the split labour, His limited standing within the House of Both of these policies were unpopular amongst the mass electorate, and rationing caused consternation most notably the middle class, to whom the need for wartime prudence was no longer apparent. With an inadequate sense of self-renewal, the Attlee era party had little further to put before voters after 1947. The outcome was widely credited to the deft materialism of Harold Macmillan, and the slogan `You've never had it so good', which the Conservatives, in fact, did not use. why did labour lose the 1951 election. As Prime Minister, he enlarged and improved social services and the public sector in post-war Britain, creating the National Health Service and nationalising major industries and public utilities. Beveridge aimed to create a minimum standard of living and full employment and believed the five evils blocking these aims and reconstruction were: Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness. On Friday morning the. There was. The changes appear to have been hugely beneficial to the majority of the population. The labour Government of 1945-51 passed, in total, 347 acts of parliament. <p>The NHS had been established by the post-war Labour government in 1948. Then, the second ministry saw a fractious Parliamentary party being further divided over the Korean War and the advancement of the National Health Service, leading up to a comfortable Tory win in the October 1951 election. This people's war was very beneficial to Labour in warming people to socialist ideologies, and their belief on the war being, not just a fight against the fascist Germany, but a struggle for a prosperous post-war Britain. Following Cripps resignation on grounds of ill health, Hugh Gaitskell took over as Chancellor during Attlees second government. This caused widespread discontent as even during the war, bread had not been rationed. Unpopular policies like high taxes. Senior Labour MP Margaret Hodge described Baroness Boothroyd as "inspirational" and "a trailblazer for women". Labours changes, The Spectator wrote: The conservatives of Increase in liberal votes in 1964 meant that conservative vote decreased, therefore labour required less votes to win. Labour's election record in the 1930s was poor, as they were disorganised and divided. downfall 1950, Balance of Payments record: Homefront experiences had also caused a rise in support for Labour: evacuees educated many people to the realities of poverty in Britain's cities and the Blitz brought people together in communal bomb shelters and broke down social barriers. 1946/47 winter which had dire food/ fuel The Conservative Party made some political headway by attacking the governments credentials with regard to the 1948 devaluation of the pound, which was designed to bring about the much needed rise in exports. In contrast to the break-up of the MacDonald Labour government in 1931, there was no 'bankers' ramp' or dramatic and overwhelming financial crisis. The term was coined from a particular type of horse racing wherein the winning horse passes the final post and all the others are disqualified. 419 million in 1951, Increase in defence expenditure by 4.7 billion, Issues rose in Furthermore, an apparently humiliating trade policy including subservience to US demands was particularly discrediting in the eyes of post-colonialists who identified this as betrayal rather than pragmatism. There are three main sub-categories for this answer; the Conservatives strengths, Labours weaknesses/ limitations, and uncontrollable factors.