Margaret Thatcher Leadership research In office 4 May 1979- 28 November 1990 Fang Zi Ying Tay Jia Shin Jonathon Koh Jun Jie Ernest Cheong Yi Ern

Contents Biography Political work and roles Strengths of Margaret Thatcher’s leadership Weaknesses of Margaret Thatcher’s leadership Conclusion

Biography

Early Life Grew up in Grantham, Lincolnshire Composed of a closely-bonded conservative community. Attended Somerville College, Oxford

Early Life Her Father, Albert Roberts, has vastly shaped her political conviction. Methodist Father is active in local religion and politics Brought her up as a strict Methodist Frequently talked with Margaret on issues of the day

Early Political Career She received her first taste of politics in her mid-twenties Ran as the Conservative candidate of Dartford in the 1950-1951 General Election, with both resulting in defeat. Nevertheless, she cut the opposing Labour majority sharply and hugely enjoyed the experience. Interestingly, she had little difficulty getting a hearing from any audience, speaking easily with confidence on issues which mattered to the voters.

Career 1950 Lawyer, specializing in taxation 1959 Member of Parliament for Finchley, a North London constituency 1992 A member of the House of Lords 1994 Junior office in admin of Harold Macmillan 1964-70 Established her place among senior figures of the party, served as shadow minister

Career 1970 Achieved cabinet rank as Education Secretary 1975 Elected Conservative Leader 75-79 Leader of the Opposition 79-83 Prime Minister- 1st Term 83-87 Prime Minister- 2nd Term 87-90 Prime Minister- 3rd Term

Political Career After the Conservatives were defeated in 1974, Thatcher challenged Heath for the leadership of the party. To the surprise of many, she defeated him in both ballots and won. In the 1979 general election, Conservatives came to power and she became prime minister

Prime Minister 1st Term Pledged to check and reverse Britain’s economic decline, she implemented many painful measures. Privatization of state-owned industries and utilities Reform of the trade unions Lowering of taxes and reduced social expenditure Her policies succeeded in reducing inflation, but unemployment dramatically increased. Re-election seemed unlikely

Prime Minister 1st Term A military victory in the Falklands War in 1983 made the electorates extremely impressed This allowed her to win a landslide victory in the 1983 general election. In 1984, she narrowly escaped death when IRA planted a bomb at the Conservative Part Conference in Brighton

Prime Minister 2nd Term In foreign affairs, Thatcher cultivated a close political relationship with US president Ronald Reagan Based on a common mistrust of communism Free-market economic ideology

Prime Minister 2nd Term Thatcher was nicknamed the 'Iron Lady' by the Soviets. She warmly welcomed the rise of reformist Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Played a constructive part in the diplomacy that smoothed the break-up of the Soviet Empire

Prime Minister 3rd Term In the 1987 general election, Thatcher won an unprecedented third term in office. Made controversial policies such as the poll tax and her opposition to any closer integration with Europe produced divisions within the Conservative Party Led to a leadership challenge In November 1990, she agreed to resign Succeeded as party leader and prime minister by John Major.

Margaret Thatcher Political work

Duration as prime minister Was Britain’s first female prime minister Served for three terms, from 1979 to 1990

Privatisation An advocate of privatisation of state-owned industries and utilities, reform of the trade unions, the lowering of taxes and reduced social expenditure across the board Her policies succeeded in reducing inflation, but unemployment skyrocketed as many workers were left jobless.

Trade Unions Margaret Thatcher set out to reduce the power of trade unions However this resulted in many strikes and the loss of millions of working days Her impact was such that trade unions were effectively crippled for one generation

Foreign affairs Margaret Thatcher formed a strong alliance with then U.S. President Ronald Reagan, based on their mutual distrust of Communism and their free-market economic ideology. The 1982 Falklands War was handled superbly by Margaret Thatcher and Argentina was defeated

Defining certain key terms

What is leadership? Can be defined as: the process of influencing, inspiring and supporting others to work towards the achievement of group goals In our case, Margaret Thatcher’s leadership is political leadership How is leadership measured?

What method is used to measure leadership? Trait Theory – leadership qualities Path goal theory – it is the leaders job to assist followers in attaining their goals and to provide the necessary direction and/or support to ensure that their goals are compatible with the overall objectives of the group or the organization.

What are some qualities of a leader? Dynamic – Able to change his leadership style Tactful Motivation Good oration / communication Foresightedness Good analyser Interactions –Understand his followers better Supportive Job Related Knowledge Confidence

What should a political leader do? What should a leader do? What should a political leader do? Garner support of his people Makes decisions for the greater good Integrity and loyal to his people Bring out the best in his people Give new hope and enthusiasm Lead by example Guide his people

What are some leadership qualities that Margaret Thatcher possess? Confident “Iron-willed” Persistent Decisive Hardworking Committed Able to install several new effective policies

Why do you say that Margaret Thatcher possesses these leadership qualities?

Hardworking Displayed constant hard work during her school days Won a scholarship for Somerville College Eventually she went to Oxford in 1943 to study in Natural Sciences with a specialization in Chemistry

Persistence She faced several rejections before being elected as a Member of Parliament in 1959 election Lost the 1950 and 1951 election from Dartford Between 1950 and 1958 she was rejected several times in her pursuit of a safe Conservative seat After a hard campaign, she eventually gained a seat for Finchley in April 1958

Decisive Put up a Private Member’s Bill requiring local council meeting to be held in public Her first speech in its support was instrumental in getting it passed by the Parliament In 1961, she voted against the Conservative party’s official stand and voted for restoration of birching Opposed mandatory price and income control Believed would distort the economy Against the Government’s high tax policy, Low taxes work as an incentive and motivation to work hard. Corporal punishment with a birch rod, typically applied to the recipient's bare buttocks

Confident Youngest ever female conservative candidate, yet she stood for the 1950 and 1951 election from Dartford

Committed Almost assassinated by IRA (Irish Republican Army), which bombed her hotel where she was staying to attend the Conservative Party Conference Refused to be cowed down by the act and insisted that the conference be held on schedule and at the same venue

Visionary; install effective policies Initiated new economic policies Successfully managed the Irish crisis Recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina Reduced the power of trade unions Privatisation: transferring the ownership of business from the public sector to the private sector Thatcherism: reduced role of the state in economy Influenced government thinking in other countries as well British Airways Emulated by more than 50 countries

Are we making any assumptions? Are we assuming that being such a successful leader, Margaret Thatcher did not make any mistakes in her political career? No. Her combative personality and overriding opinions of colleagues gave rise to discontent against her within the party Introduction of poll tax in 1989 Unpopular and led to a lot of riots and decreased support for the Party

But great leaders make mistakes too: Theodore Roosevelt was a great leader Example: In 1907, Theodore Roosevelt decided to send the US navy on a round-the-world cruise, believing the event would prove America's power and strength. But by using his position as Commander-in-Chief to avoid negotiations with Congress, Roosevelt's actions set a dangerous precedent for presidents to exert total power.

What are the direct implications of Thatcher’s strengths? Able to remain Prime Minister of England for 11 years (three consecutive terms) One of the most dominant and popular women leaders of the 20th century

What are the indirect implication of Thatcher’s strengths? Thatcherism Privatisation Reducing the power of trade unions UK’s economy prospered, due to Thatcher’s structuring of the labour market Nationalised industries were sold off to the public – every one share the wealth of the nation

Are these strengths a true representation of Margaret Thatcher? Might have put up a public façade, like Eva Peron However, based on her contributions, she is a good leader by making critical decisions that has helped shape England. Leadership is difficult to measure, subjective, as well as difficult to define It means different things to each person

Is there an example of a great leader with Thatcher’s qualities? Her determination and hard work are most representative of her traits Winston Churchill possesses determination: “We shall go on to the end.  We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be.  We shall fight on beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”

Is determination really necessary for a great leader? Yes, most leaders possess determination It is the pre-requisite for success, without determination it is difficult to achieve anything

Margaret Thatcher’s weaknesses and mistakes Jonathan Koh 3S2

Major Weakness Stubborn/inflexible Saw taking a U-turn was a sign of weakness Felt people would think less of her if she went back on a policy

Major weakness Imperious nature Reluctance to reverse and review policies that were bad decisions Resulted in the public antagonism Unpopular with her own party as she did not heed others’ advice

Major mistake Poll Tax in 1989 In the past people paid taxes based on the value of their property The tax system was changed to the number of people living in a household. More people in a house = Higher taxes

Major Mistake Shifting the burden from the wealthy to the poor. Every household was paying more. She had personally identified herself with the Poll Tax and was determined it should remain

Public discontent Poll Tax Riots They felt the government was trying to squeeze money out of the people Widespread outcry The protests quickly became a national issue Large-scale riots in London and a non-payment campaign 100,000 protestors took to the streets

Feasibility A lot of the British population is highly mobile, Difficult to work out how many people were living in a household at any one time Some people avoided paying tax

Conclusion

Was Thatcher a good leader? Yes. She possessed many values essential for a good leader, such as determination and perseverance. She had resolve in her policies and did not U-turn easily. She was also firm in her stance on important issues (such as Communism) and had a no-nonsense attitude (as demonstrated from her unwilling to give in to workers’ riots), thus giving the impression that she could not be pushed about.

Was Thatcher a good leader? Margaret Thatcher possessed another very important value- she was upright. The saying goes, “Power corrupts”. However, she did not misuse the power which she had for her own selfish benefit. Neither did she cling onto power longer than she should have, voluntarily stepping down and letting John Major become the new Prime Minister.

Was Thatcher a good leader? Margaret Thatcher did improve the standard of living of the people, to some extent. Under her Britain’s economy prospered, she distributed wealth to all of the people through Privatisation, and she managed to successfully reduce the rate of inflation.

Was Thatcher a good leader? Margaret Thatcher was also dedicated. She kept to her task and insisted on giving her speech despite almost being assassinated by a bomb planted by the IRA earlier on in the day. From this one can infer that she had an altruistic desire to serve her countrymen; prioritising the nation above herself.

Bibliography http://home.earthlink.net/~zappo/apgov/thatcher.html http://drmatthewashton.com/2011/04/16/great-mistakes-in-politics-no20-%E2%80%93-margaret-thatcher-and-the-poll-tax/ http://factoidz.com/the-downfall-of-margaret-thatcher/