Misplaced Pages

#52947

73-515: In the 1987 General Election , McLeish was elected to Westminster to serve as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Fife , where he took control of offices on Hanover Court, Glenrothes . The offices were too big and he sublet parts of the first floor. However, McLeish failed to declare the income from the sub lets to the House of Common 's register of interests as he had "forgot". In early 2001,

146-516: A by-election in which he fought as a Democratic Labour candidate against the official party candidate. Taverne won by an unexpectedly large margin. He founded the short lived Campaign for Social Democracy (CFSD) thereafter, and wrote a book about events surrounding the by-election called The Future of the Left – Lincoln and After (1972). But the CFSD failed to gain nationwide support, and Taverne lost

219-844: A by-election at Portsmouth South in 1984 from the Conservatives which was lost in 1987, but Rosie Barnes , who had won the bitterly contested Greenwich by-election in February 1987 from Labour; managed to hold on at the general election in June that year. From the outset, the formation of the Alliance had raised questions as to whether it would lead to a merged party, or the two parties were destined to compete with each other. This in turn led to grassroots tensions in some areas between Liberal and SDP branches that impaired their ability to mount joint campaigns successfully. Such cross-party feuding

292-532: A by-election in February 1983 to Liberal candidate Simon Hughes : the sitting Labour MP Robert Mellish resigned to work for the London Docklands Development Corporation but, being opposed to the selection by his left-wing Constituency Labour Party of Peter Tatchell , supported the former leader of Southwark council John O'Grady as " Real Bermondsey Labour " giving an impression of Labour division and in-fighting. At

365-662: A continuing SDP . The origin of the party can be traced back to the ideological divisions in the Labour Party in the 1950s (with its forerunner being the Campaign for Democratic Socialism established to support the Gaitskellites ), but publicly lies in the 1979 Dimbleby Lecture given by Roy Jenkins as he neared the end of his presidency of the European Commission . Jenkins argued the necessity for

438-600: A campaign focusing on lower taxes, a strong economy and strong defence. They also emphasised that unemployment had just fallen below the 3 million mark for the first time since 1981, and inflation was standing at 4%, its lowest level since the 1960s. National newspapers also continued to largely back the Conservative government, particularly The Sun , which ran anti– Labour Party articles with headlines such as "Why I'm backing Kinnock, by Stalin ". Labour, led by Neil Kinnock following Michael Foot 's resignation in

511-656: A decisive victory against the SDP–Liberal Alliance and marked out the Labour Party as the main contender to the Conservative Party. This was in stark contrast to 1983, when the Alliance almost matched Labour in terms of votes; although Labour had almost 10 times as many seats as the Alliance due to the structure of the First-Past-The-Post voting system. The result for the Alliance was a disappointment, in that they had hoped to overtake Labour as

584-574: A dilution by the former SDP members of the Liberal tradition within the merged party. It too continues in the present day, as one of the smallest political parties with elected representatives. Following the dissolution of the SDP, a number of members endorsed Conservative Prime Minister John Major for the 1992 general election . The basic unit of the SDP was its Area Parties, most of which corresponded with more than one Westminster constituency . Of

657-655: A greater share of the popular vote in the 2019 general election . The 50th Parliament was the last time to date that a Conservative government has lasted a full term with an overall majority of seats in Parliament, until the 2019-2024 parliament. The election night was covered live on the BBC, presented by David Dimbleby , Peter Snow and Robin Day . It was also broadcast on ITV, presented by Sir Alastair Burnet , Peter Sissons and Alastair Stewart . The 1987 general election saw

730-442: A narrow 2% Conservative lead, the "exiles" camp of David Young , Tim Bell and the advertising firm Young & Rubicam advocated a more aggressively anti-Labour message. This was when, according to Young's memoirs, Young grabbed Tebbit by the lapels and shook him, shouting: "Norman, listen to me, we're about to lose this fucking election." In his memoirs, Tebbit defends the Conservative campaign: "We finished exactly as planned on

803-415: A new name: "and for our side we'll take 'Social Democratic', and from your side, we'll take 'Party'"; and indeed a new leader "from your side we will take 'David' and from ours 'Owen'", to which a hesitant Steel agreed. After the disappointment of 1987, Steel proposed a formal merger of the two parties. Jenkins and Steel had believed this to be eventually inevitable after the party failed to break through at

SECTION 10

#1732773011053

876-521: A newspaper reported that McLeish had received rent for 5 years from a solicitors firm, Digby Brown. Following the report, he registered the sub let with the House of Commons, however, Dominic Grieve , a Conservatives spokesman, later wrote to Elizabeth Filkin , the House of Commons Commissioner on Standards. The issue then became dormant as McLeish ceased to be an MP after the 2001 general election . There were continuing claims he should resign, mainly from

949-618: A party called the Social Democratic Party which had been formed in Manchester in 1979, changed his name to Roy Harold Jenkins to contest the seat. SDP polling agents were given special dispensation by the Returning Officer to have placards outside of polling stations to state which one on the ballot papers was the real Roy. Ultimately, the SDP's Jenkins was elected. A leadership election was held later in

1022-677: A realignment in British politics, and discussed whether this could be brought about from within the existing Liberal Party , or from a new group driven by European principles of social democracy . In some areas, the Militant tendency were held to be systematically targeting weak local party branches in safe seat areas in order to have their own candidates selected, and thus become MPs. Eddie Milne at Blyth (Northumberland) and Dick Taverne in Lincoln were both victims of such intrigues during

1095-566: A reduced but still strong majority of 102 seats. Labour succeeded in resisting the challenge by the SDP–Liberal Alliance to maintain its position as HM Official Opposition. Moreover, Labour managed to increase its vote share in Scotland, Wales and the North of England. Yet Labour still returned only 229 MPs to Westminster; and in certain London constituencies which Labour had held before the election,

1168-399: A speech two days later Thatcher attacked Labour's defence policy as a programme for "defeat, surrender, occupation, and finally, prolonged guerrilla fighting ... I do not understand how anyone who aspires to Government can treat the defence of our country so lightly". During the 1987 election campaign the Conservative Party issued attack posters which claimed that the Labour Party wanted

1241-646: The 1979 general election . All four had held cabinet experience in the 1970s before Labour lost power in 1979. The four left the Labour Party as a result of the January 1981 Wembley conference which committed the party to unilateral nuclear disarmament and withdrawal from the European Economic Community . They also believed that Labour had become too left-wing, and had been infiltrated at constituency party level by Militant tendency whose views and behaviour they considered to be at odds with

1314-547: The 1983 general election , the SDP–Liberal Alliance won more than 25% of the national vote, close behind Labour's 28%, but well behind the 44% secured by the Conservatives. However, because of the characteristics of the first-past-the-post electoral system used in the United Kingdom, only 23 Alliance MPs were elected, just six of whom were members of the SDP. The party's leader, Roy Jenkins, managed to retain his seat at Glasgow Hillhead , but SDP President Shirley Williams

1387-685: The Anglo-Irish Agreement ; however, the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) lost two seats to the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP). One of the UUP losses was former Cabinet Minister Enoch Powell , famous for his stance against immigration, and formerly a Conservative MP. To date the Conservatives have not matched or surpassed their 1987 seat total in any general election held subsequently, although they recorded

1460-735: The Parliamentary Labour Party and Labour voters. Shortly after its formation, the SDP formed a political and electoral alliance with the Liberal Party , the SDP–Liberal Alliance , which lasted through the 1983 and 1987 general elections . In 1988, the two parties merged, forming the Social and Liberal Democrats , later renamed the Liberal Democrats, although a minority, led by Owen, left to form

1533-606: The Scottish National Party who claimed the issue questioned his integrity. McLeish rebutted the charges against him, claiming that the issue was "a muddle, not a fiddle". Despite appearing to have support from Scottish Labour and the Scottish Liberal Democrats , he resigned on 8 November. He was replaced by Jack McConnell , who was elected unopposed to the leadership of Scottish Labour and was then elected First Minister by MSPs after securing

SECTION 20

#1732773011053

1606-564: The Ulster Unionist Party ), Gordon Wilson (leader of the Scottish National Party ) and two Alliance members: Liberal Clement Freud and former SDP leader Roy Jenkins (a former Labour Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer). Neil Kinnock increased his share of the vote in Islwyn by almost 12%. Margaret Thatcher increased her share of the vote in her own seat in Finchley , but

1679-569: The " Gang of Four ") launched the Council for Social Democracy, after outlining their policies in what became known as the Limehouse Declaration . In March it was renamed the Social Democratic Party. The "Gang of Four" were centrists , who defected from the Labour Party due to what they perceived to be the influence of the Militant tendency and the " hard left " within the party. Thirteen Labour MPs initially declared support for

1752-524: The 1950s under different leaders ( Churchill in 1951 , Eden in 1955 and Macmillan in 1959) and early in the century, the Liberals also had three successive wins under two leaders ( Henry Campbell-Bannerman in 1906 and H. H. Asquith twice in 1910). The Conservative lead over Labour of 11.4% was the second-greatest for any governing party since the Second World War; only being bettered by

1825-602: The 1970s, but in both cases there was enough of a local outcry by party members – and the electorate – for them to fight and win their seats as independent candidates against the official Labour candidates. In Taverne's case, he had been fighting efforts by the Lincoln Constituency Labour Party to deselect him largely over his support for British membership of the European Communities . In October 1972 he resigned his seat to force

1898-484: The 1983 election. The proposal, also supported by Williams and Rodgers, was fiercely opposed by Owen, who argued that such a merger would not be accepted by the electorate, and would not reverse their declining share of the vote. Jenkins denied that a merger had been his original intent. But the majority of the SDP's membership (along with those of the Liberals) voted in favour of the union. Owen resigned as leader and

1971-798: The 223 area parties that existed in September 1986, only 42 were single-constituency Area Parties. Area Parties were considered by party leaders as better at resisting entryism or the formation of local cliques that opposed the national party, issues the SDPs founders believed the CLPs of the Labour Party struggled with. Additionally area parties aided the SDP's coöperation SDP–Liberal Alliance , as multi-consituancy area parties were at less risk of disenfranchisement in cases of Liberal Party led seats. The Party had three key leading organs. The first

2044-492: The Conservatives actually made gains. The election was a disappointment for the Alliance, which saw its vote share fall and suffered a net loss of one seat as well as former SDP leader Roy Jenkins losing his seat to Labour. This led to the two Alliance parties merging completely soon afterwards to become the Liberal Democrats . In Northern Ireland, the main unionist parties maintained their alliance in opposition to

2117-421: The Council for Social Democracy. "Democratic", "Democratic Labour", and "Radical" were all mentioned as possible names for the new party, as well as "New Labour" but eventually "Social Democratic" was settled on because the "Gang of Four" consciously wanted to mould the philosophy and ideology of the new party on the social democracy practised on mainland Europe. The opening statement of principles contained in

2190-481: The Council for Social Democracy. On 20 February 1981, three of these Tom Ellis , Richard Crawshaw and Ian Wrigglesworth resigned the Labour whip and another, Tom Bradley , announced he would not contest his seat again as a Labour candidate. These moves were reported to be a clear move towards formally creating a new centre party. Former Labour Party deputy leader, Baron George-Brown also announced his membership of

2263-561: The Labour vote increased in the Prime Minister's constituency; thereby slightly reducing her majority. In Northern Ireland, the various unionist parties maintained an electoral pact (with few dissenters) in opposition to the Anglo-Irish Agreement . However, the Ulster Unionists lost two seats to the Social Democratic and Labour Party . The election victory won by the Conservatives could also arguably be attributed to

Officegate - Misplaced Pages Continue

2336-508: The Limehouse Group in an attempt to keep the party on the centre-left course that was first propounded in the Limehouse Declaration . Two more SDP MPs were elected at by-elections during the 1983–87 parliament, but at the 1987 general election , the Alliance's share of the vote fell to 23%, and the SDP's parliamentary party was reduced from eight members to five. Roy Jenkins was among those who lost their seats. Mike Hancock had won

2409-632: The Official Opposition in the UK in terms of vote share. Instead, they lost Roy Jenkins ' seat and saw their vote share drop by almost 3%, with a widening gap of 8% between them and the Labour Party (compared to a 2% gap four years before). These results would eventually lead to the end of the Alliance and the birth of the Liberal Democrats . Most of the prominent MPs retained their seats. Notable losses included: Enoch Powell (the controversial former Conservative Cabinet Minister who had defected to

2482-536: The SDP emphasised a middle position between perceived extremes of Thatcherism and the Labour Party. Its constitution argued for "the fostering of a strong public sector and a strong private sector without frequent frontier changes". The SDP favoured some neoliberal Thatcherite reforms during the 1980s, such as legislation aimed at restricting trade unions (although the parliamentary SDP actually split three ways on Norman Tebbit's 1982 Industrial Relations Bill, most voting for, some against, and others abstaining ). However,

2555-476: The UUP in Northern Ireland from the Conservatives in 1974) and Clement Freud . The Conservative campaign emphasised lower taxes, a strong economy and defence, and also employed rapid-response reactions to take advantage of Labour errors. Norman Tebbit and Saatchi & Saatchi spearheaded the Conservative campaign. However, when on "Wobbly Thursday" it was rumoured a Marplan opinion poll showed

2628-491: The aftermath of the party's landslide defeat at the 1983 general election , was slowly moving towards a more centrist policy platform, following the promulgation of a left-wing one under Foot's leadership. The main aim of the Labour Party was to re-establish itself as the main progressive centre-left alternative to the Conservatives, after the rise of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) forced Labour onto

2701-534: The book Young, Gay and Proud to be read in schools, as well as Police: Out of School , The Playbook for Kids about Sex , and The Milkman's on his Way , which, according to the Monday Club 's Jill Knight MP – who introduced Section 28 and later campaigned against same-sex marriage – were being taught to "little children as young as five and six", which contained "brightly coloured pictures of little stick men showed all about homosexuality and how it

2774-624: The campaign. This, combined with considerable Conservative grassroots disquiet over the Monday Club's links to the National Front , persuaded some Conservative voters to switch to Taverne in protest as much as tactically to ensure Labour suffered an embarrassing loss. (Guinness had been elected as Chairman specifically to eradicate such links.) On 25 January 1981, leading figures from the Labour Party ( Roy Jenkins , David Owen , Shirley Williams and Bill Rodgers , known collectively as

2847-405: The defensive; and Labour succeeded in doing so at this general election. The Alliance between the SDP and the Liberal Party was renewed, but co-leaders David Owen and David Steel could not agree whether to support either major party in the event of a hung parliament . The Conservatives were returned to government, having suffered a net loss of only 21 seats, which left them with 376 MPs and

2920-609: The election of the first Black Members of Parliament: Diane Abbott , Paul Boateng and Bernie Grant , all as representatives for the Labour Party. Other newcomers included future Cabinet members David Blunkett and John Redwood , future Shadow Cabinet minister Ann Widdecombe , and future SNP Leader Alex Salmond . MPs who left the House of Commons as a result of this election include former Labour Prime Minister James Callaghan , Keith Joseph , Jim Prior , Ian Mikardo , former SDP leader and Labour Cabinet Minister Roy Jenkins , former Health Minister Enoch Powell (who had defected to

2993-525: The election would be held on 11 June. The key dates were as follows: The Conservatives were returned by a second landslide victory after their first in 1983, with a comfortable majority, down slightly on 1983 with a swing of 1.5% towards Labour. This marked the first time since the passing of the Great Reform Act in 1832 that a party leader had won three consecutive elections, although the Conservative Party had won three consecutive contests in

Officegate - Misplaced Pages Continue

3066-547: The electorate. Labour's first party political broadcast, dubbed Kinnock: The Movie , was directed by Hugh Hudson of Chariots of Fire fame, and concentrated on portraying Kinnock as a caring, compassionate family man. It was filmed at the Great Orme in Wales and had " Ode to Joy " as its music. He was particularly critical of the high unemployment that the government's economic policies had resulted in, as well as condemning

3139-508: The formation of the SDP from the sidelines from the very start. Senior Liberal MP for Rochdale Cyril Smith caused some embarrassment, however, by publicly stating that the SDP "should be strangled at birth". During an era of widescale unemployment and public disillusionment with the two main parties—Labour and the Conservatives—the Alliance achieved considerable success at parliamentary by-elections. At one point in late-1981,

3212-508: The ground where Labour was weak and we were strong—defence, taxation, and the economy." During the election campaign, however, Tebbit and party leader Margaret Thatcher argued. Bell and Saatchi & Saatchi produced memorable posters for the Conservatives, such as a picture of a British soldier's arms raised in surrender with the caption "Labour's Policy On Arms"—a reference to Labour's policy of unilateral nuclear disarmament . The first Conservative party political broadcast played on

3285-675: The merged party, but Owen created a continuing SDP , along with two other MPs, John Cartwright and Rosie Barnes . This party performed poorly at the May 1990 by-election in Bootle , behind the Monster Raving Loony Party . It disbanded, although a third SDP was formed, which currently operates on a much less influential scale. There was also a continuing Liberal Party , led by Michael Meadowcroft and David Morrish, mainly based on Liverpool and West Country Liberals who feared

3358-666: The new party, the most notable of which was the Tawney Society (mirroring the function of the Fabian Society within the Labour Party). Twenty-eight Labour MPs eventually joined the new party, along with one member of the Conservative Party , Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler , MP for North West Norfolk , who joined on 16 March 1981, a fortnight after the party's launch. Williams and Jenkins were not at

3431-516: The outbreak of the Falklands War on 2 April 1982, the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher soared from third to first place in the public opinion polls. The standing of the SDP–Liberal Alliance and Labour Party declined. By this stage, however, the SDP–Liberal Alliance already had 30 MPs in parliament, virtually all of them defectors from Labour, joined by one Conservative MP. Labour lost Bermondsey , one of their ten safest seats, at

3504-475: The party had an opinion poll rating of over 50%. That same year, David Steel addressed the Liberal Party conference with the phrase "Go back to your constituencies, and prepare for government!" In early 1982, after public disagreements over who could fight which seats in the forthcoming election, the poll rating dipped, but the party remained ahead of both Labour and the Conservatives. However, following

3577-715: The party took a more welfarist position than the Conservative Party, being more sceptical of Conservative welfare reforms (particularly regarding the National Health Service). At the party's first electoral contest, Jenkins narrowly failed to win a by-election at Warrington in July 1981, describing it as his "first defeat, but by far my greatest victory". At the Glasgow Hillhead by-election in March 1982, another candidate called Douglas Parkin, nominated by

3650-491: The party's initial public membership came from the Social Democratic Alliance . The party also received a boost with the recruitment of former student leaders from outside the Labour Party. These included former Communist Party of Great Britain member Sue Slipman as well as Conservative Party members including: Adair Turner and Tom Hayhoe . Although the SDP was seen as being largely a breakaway from

3723-420: The policies of Margaret Thatcher retained significant support, with the Conservatives given a third convincing majority. Despite initial optimism and the professional campaign run by Neil Kinnock , the election brought only twenty additional seats for Labour from the 1983 Conservative landslide. In many southern areas, the Labour vote actually fell, with the party losing seats in London. However, it represented

SECTION 50

#1732773011053

3796-495: The preamble of the party's constitution stated that: "The SDP exists to create and defend an open, classless and more equal society which rejects prejudices based upon sex, race, colour or religion". The constitution set out the establishment of a "Council for Social Democracy" (CSD) which was, in effect, the party's standing conference. Each area party was entitled to elect delegates to the CSD. A number of internal groups flourished within

3869-556: The previous 1983 result. The BBC announced the result at 02:35. Increasing polarisation marked divisions across the country; the Conservatives dominated Southern England and took additional seats from Labour in London and the rest of the South, but performed less well in Northern England , Scotland and Wales, losing many of the seats they had won there at previous elections. Yet the overall result of this election proved that

3942-456: The result, Jenkins was pressured to step down as leader of the SDP by David Owen , MP of Plymouth Devonport who between 1974 and 1979 had been a Labour Government Minister under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan . On 13 June, Jenkins stood down and of the six SDP MPs elected in 1983, only Owen stood for leader of the Party. Subsequently he became leader without any contest a week later. Owen

4015-416: The right-wing of the Labour Party, a 1984 internal party survey found that 65% of its membership had not belonged to a political party before, with 22% being drawn from Labour, 8% from the Conservatives and 8% from the Liberals. A 1981 Opinion Research Centre survey of SDP members commissioned by Weekend World found that 72% of SDP members had never been in a party before were joining a political party for

4088-598: The rise in average living standards that had taken place during their time in office. As noted by Dennis Kavanagh and David Butler in their study on the 1987 general election: Since 1987 the Conservatives had located a large constituency of "winners", people who have an interest in the return of a Conservative government. It includes much of the affluent South, home-owners, share-owners, and most of those in work, whose standard of living, measured in post-tax incomes, has risen appreciably since 1979. Social Democratic Party (UK) The Social Democratic Party ( SDP )

4161-724: The seat at the October 1974 general election . Some independent Social Democrats contested the October 1974 and 1979 general elections , but none were elected. Taverne's Lincoln by-election campaign was also helped to a lesser degree by problems with the Conservative and Unionist Party candidate, Conservative Monday Club chairman Jonathan Guinness . His suggestion during the by-election that murderers should have razor blades left in their cells so they could decently commit suicide resulted in him being nicknamed "Old Razor Blades" during

4234-510: The support of the Scottish Liberal Democrats. This Scottish history -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to the politics of Scotland is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . 1987 United Kingdom general election Margaret Thatcher Conservative Margaret Thatcher Conservative The 1987 United Kingdom general election

4307-465: The theme of "Freedom" and ended with a fluttering Union Jack, the hymn I Vow to Thee, My Country (which Thatcher would later quote in her " Sermon on the Mound ") and the slogan "It's Great To Be Great Again". The Labour campaign was a marked change from previous efforts; professionally directed by Peter Mandelson and Bryan Gould , it concentrated on presenting and improving Neil Kinnock 's image to

4380-510: The time Members of Parliament, but were elected to the House of Commons at by-elections in Crosby and Glasgow Hillhead respectively. The defecting Labour MPs were: Nine Labour members of the House of Lords also joined the SDP on its creation, eight of whom had previously held ministerial office. In a letter to Labour Party leader Michael Foot , the defecting peers said they had taken their decision "with great sorrow". They were: Much of

4453-402: The very first time, and that only 15% being former Labour Party members. The party enjoyed a considerable honeymoon period with the press, who made much mileage out of their quirk for proffering claret at their functions. Claret is an "agreeable" wine, and a metaphor for the party's harmonious internal relations compared to those of the strife-torn Labour Party of the period. The policies of

SECTION 60

#1732773011053

4526-407: The wait for treatment that many patients had endured on the National Health Service . Kinnock's personal popularity jumped 16 points overnight following the initial broadcast. On 24 May, Kinnock was interviewed by David Frost and claimed that Labour's alternative defence strategy in the event of a Soviet attack would be "using the resources you've got to make any occupation totally untenable". In

4599-429: The year, Jenkins beating Owen in the ballot to become the first leader of the new party. Later in the year, Shirley Williams defeated Bill Rodgers in the ballot to become SDP president. The SDP formed the SDP–Liberal Alliance with the Liberal Party in June 1981, under the joint leadership of Roy Jenkins (SDP) and Liberal leader David Steel . The Liberal Party, and in particular its leader, David Steel , had applauded

4672-472: Was a centrist to centre-left political party in the United Kingdom . The party supported a mixed economy (favouring a system inspired by the German social market economy ), electoral reform , European integration and a decentralised state while rejecting the possibility of trade unions being overly influential within industrial relations . The SDP officially advocated social democracy , and unofficially for social liberalism as well. The SDP

4745-425: Was defeated at Crosby (which she had won at a by-election in November 1981) as a result of unfavourable boundary changes. Labour Party leader Michael Foot, who resigned within days of the election, was critical of the SDP–Liberal Alliance for siphoning support away from Labour, allowing the Conservatives to win more seats and secure a triple-digit majority, while Labour was left with 209 seats in Parliament. Following

4818-431: Was done", and "explicitly described homosexual intercourse and, indeed, glorified it, encouraging youngsters to believe that it was better than any other sexual way of life". The following newspapers endorsed political parties running in the election in the following ways: The Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher visited Buckingham Palace on 11 May and asked the Queen to dissolve Parliament on 18 May, announcing that

4891-399: Was founded on 26 March 1981 by four senior Labour Party moderates, dubbed the " Gang of Four ": Roy Jenkins , David Owen , Bill Rodgers , and Shirley Williams , who issued the Limehouse Declaration . Owen and Rodgers were sitting Labour Members of Parliament (MPs); Jenkins had left Parliament in 1977 to serve as President of the European Commission , while Williams had lost her seat in

4964-437: Was held on Thursday 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the House of Commons . The election was the third consecutive general election victory for the Conservative Party , who won a majority of 102 seats and second landslide under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher , who became the first Prime Minister since the Earl of Liverpool in 1820 to lead a party into three successive electoral victories. The Conservatives ran

5037-495: Was more sceptical about close relations with the Liberals than his predecessor Roy Jenkins, and favoured retaining the party's distinct identity. Owen's influence ensured that proposals for a merger between the two parties were shelved after a lengthy debate at the 1983 SDP conference. During the 1983–87 parliament, some SDP members started to become unsettled at what appeared to be the increasingly right-wing course taken by SDP leader David Owen. This resulted in some members launching

5110-406: Was part of the reason for Jenkins losing his Glasgow Hillhead seat to George Galloway of the Labour Party in 1987. Liberal pride was further damaged by the sustained lampooning of the Alliance by ITV's popular Spitting Image satirical puppet comedy programme, which portrayed Steel as the craven lickspittle of Owen; One sketch had Owen proposing to a simpering Steel that the parties merged under

5183-537: Was replaced by Robert Maclennan . Steel and Maclennan headed the new "Social and Liberal Democrats" party from 3 March 1988. An interim working name for the party, the "Democrats", was adopted by conference on 26 September 1988. This proved to be unpopular, and the party was renamed the Liberal Democrats in October 1989, as had been originally proposed at the September 1988 conference by the party's Tiverton branch. Most SDP members, including SDP MP and future Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy , joined Maclennan in

5256-469: Was responsible for much of the day-to-day administration of the party Membership of the National Committee was composed of: The Council for Social Democracy was the largest of the three organs. Totaling approximately 400 elected members, it was often nicknamed as the "Parliament of the Party". The constitution of the SDP stipulated that the CSD met thrice yearly, and that it be chaired by

5329-488: Was the National Committee which was the executive body of the party, the second was the Council for Social Democracy (CSD), and the last was Policy Committee which set the policy of the SDP. The Policy Committee was a sub-committee of the National Committee, and was the most powerful body of the SDP. Membership of the Policy Committee was composed of: The National Committee was the SDP's executive body and

#52947