Why was the National Government formed in 1931?

Learning objective – to be able to explain why the National Government was formed in 1931. I can describe some of the reasons why the National Government was created. Grade D I can explain why the National Government was created. Grade B I can explain and assess the significance of the reasons why the National Government was formed. Grade A

Starter – What is the message of this cartoon?

Why was the National Government formed in 1931? The outcome of the 1929 General Election. Weaknesses of the minority Labour government of 1929-31. Economic problems caused by the Great Depression. Role of Ramsay MacDonald.

What was the outcome of the 1929 General Election? On the back of an uninspired ‘Safety First’ election campaign, the Conservatives did not do enough to retain office as a single party government. The results of the General Election were unusual in that the Conservatives won the largest share of the vote with 38.2% but this was not translated into an overall majority of seats as they won 260 of the 605 seats contested while Labour won 287 seats. Therefore, the Labour Party, led by Ramsay MacDonald returned to power, in a minority government supported by 59 Liberal MPs.

What did the 1929-31 Labour government try to do? The Labour Party had been in power, only once before – during 1924. This period in office remained an unhappy memory as Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, was forced to make harsh economic choices that affected the poorest voters as well as handle the threat of industrial action. It was also dependent on Liberal support which blunted its radical programme of welfare legislation. The Labour government quickly lost support and was forced to call an election, which it lost heavily to the Conservatives.

What did the 1929-31 Labour government try to do? Returning to office, MacDonald wanted to pass social welfare reforms which he was unable to do in 1924. Therefore, he quickly developed a working relationship with the Liberal MPs and was able to pass a number of social reforms, which included The 1930 Housing Act and The Coal Mine Act 1930. However, MacDonald warned in 1930 that Britain was going to go through ‘an economic blizzard’ over the next two years – he was right and the ‘blizzard’ blew away his government.

Why was the 1931 budget significant? By 1931, the Labour government was struggling to finance its spending commitments, particularly finding money for their welfare reforms. Therefore, the 1931 budget was being prepared to be unbalanced – meaning the government had plans to spend more than its income. They would lead to an increase in government borrowing. US banks were unwilling to lend the British government money to finance its significant welfare commitments. They had large reserves of the British pound and wanted to protect the value of their investment in the pound.

Why was the 1931 budget significant? The government needed to reassure investors that the pound was secure as US banks were beginning to sell their reserves of the pound, leading to the pound falling in value. The government put together plans to cut spending and raise taxes. The centrepiece of these proposals was to cut unemployment benefit by 10% which were keenly supported by Prime Minister, MacDonald, and his Chancellor, Philip Snowden. They argued that these proposals would stabilise the pound despite causing hardship to many within the working class. These proposals split the Labour Party and after much political wrangling resigned as the party of government on August 24th 1931 and moved to expel MacDonald and Snowden from the party with Arthur Lansbury taking over.

What was the role of Ramsay MacDonald in creating the National Government in 1931? MacDonald was a Prime Minister without a party and was ready to resign. However, both King George V and the Conservative Party wanted MacDonald to continue as Prime Minister – but for very different reasons. King George V appealed to MacDonald’s patriotic duty and argued that by resigning MacDonald would make things even more unstable at a time of great difficulty. The Conservatives, led by Stanley Baldwin, were happy to allow MacDonald continue as Prime Minister thinking that MacDonald would bear the brunt of any unpopular economic measures clearing the way for the Conservatives to take power at a later date. As a result, MacDonald announced that he would continue to serve as Prime Minister leading a ‘National Government’ to face the emergency.

What happened in the General Election of 1931? MacDonald called for an election in October 1931. He was worried that this would split the Labour Party – some had joined him to serve as part of the National Government while the rest formed a separate Labour Party following George Lansbury. The Liberals were also similarly spilt. The Conservatives, who had thrown their lot in with the National Government, insisted on an election as they wanted such a coalition government to tackle the crisis to be voted by the people. The outcome of the 1931 General Election was an overwhelming victory for the National Government winning 554 seats with the Conservatives holding 473 of them.

Task This visual hexagon activity helps you make links between the different influences behind the formation of the National Government. In pairs, make links between each hexagon and write two sentences for each link explaining them fully.

Home learning task How far extremism was a threat in Britain? One of the threats to the National Government was the threat of extremism in the 1930s. Make notes on – How far extremism was a threat in Britain? Why was Oswald Mosley popular in the 1930s?