Who was a better Prime Minister than Margaret Thatcher in your lifetime - if anyone?

[Gregory2Smith1]

Another one for John Major

Sunday shopping,very useful

 

[Gary Gurr]

All of them

Agreed

 

[Seagull over Canaryland]

If she was a lift attendant she took the country from the first floor (already going down) to the basement IMHO.

The main reason why Mrs T got elected in the first place was a backlash because we were already in the basement courtesy of weak old Labour and strong Unions who between them had dug a deep black hole, pushed us into it and started to shovel the soil on top. Economically the UK was bust having already been propped up by the IMF and it needed someone with balls to come and take the difficult decisions that somehow kept us going.

As mentioned in an earlier post I dread to think what might have happened if old Labour had got re-elected in '79 and perpetuated their policies, the country would have gone bankrupt. I was a labour party member and union official in the late 70'/80s and full of youthful rage against the machine but realistically looking back at the bigger picture the unions didn't care too much about their members or the country, it was all about smashing the Govt, whatever political colour it was. Ok many jobs may have been saved in the short term as the Unions exercised their stranglehold over a weak Labour party, but untold damage would have been done in the medium/long term. Possibly even worse than Mrs. T's impact. It was the extreme left Unionists who then drove many of their more pragmatic members away in the '80s and '90s, they were so out of touch.

That doesn't excuse some of Mrs.T's policies, she certainly wasn't Mother Teresa and still has a lot to answer for but I have to acknowledge that she had balls, which highlights just how lame more recent generations of politicians have been. I don't particularly rate Blair as a PM, he had an easy ride after Mrs T. and John Major.

Blair could do no wrong, he inherited an economy in a far better state, the unions were less of a problem for him, he cherry picked the best of Mrs.T's policies and moved New Labour to the centre ground. He was shrewd enough to deliver a range of sugar coated sweetners to the electorate. For me Blair recognised that it was important to make the country feel good. Much of this was acheived through maintaining Tory strategies and by all out PR and spin. Blair merely seized the moment rather than actually being a stellar PM.

I wasn't alive when Attlee was in power but I'm old enough to be among the generation that benefitted, so can understand why he is highly regarded. So in answer to the OP's question - on balance Mrs. T probably gets my (reluctant) vote. And that's from a disillusioned 'old leftie'.

 

[Tubby Mondays]

Another one for John Major

Sunday shopping,very useful

As was the cones hotline.

 

[TonyW]

This question is primarily aimed at the Thatcher haters. Who in your opinion was/is the best Prime Minister of the UK within your lifetime & why have you selected this individual?

In my 46 years on this planet, Thatcher in my opinion is the best PM that this country has had. My reasons: Her legacy still lives on & she pulled the country up from the floor to where it is now.

So who is your best PM?

Each and every one of them.

Evil, power-crazed witch, who allowed thousands of British soldiers to die in order to win an election.

 

[Perfidious Albion]

Sorry, I have no time for any of them........

 

[mlg57]

Prime Ministers during my lifetime:
Sir Winston Churchill (1951-1955)
Sir Anthony Eden (1955-1957)
Harold McMillan (1957-1963)
Sir Alec Douglas-Home (1963-1964)
Harold Wilson(1964-1970 and 1974-1976)
Edward Heath (1970-1974)
James Callaghan (1976-1979)
Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990)
John Major (1990-1997)
Tony Blair (1997-2007)
Gordon Brown (2007-2010)
David Cameron (2010-)

I remember the State funeral of Churchill but the first PM I was aware of was Harold Wilson, who was seen as a witty, modern, working-class PM, as opposed to the old- school aristos, Home and Eden. Wilson liked The Beatles and the "white heat" of technology and presided over the Swinging Sixties. He was the right PM at the right time. At school, we held our own General Election in 1964, and Wilson won. We didn't know it then, but he was a crafty manipulator of the soundbite and networking.

Heath was a toothy twonk who liked sailing and the organ, both hobbies as boring as his tenure of No 10. He was responsible for the 3-day week and a complete lightweight who subsequently sulked his way through Thatcher's tenure.

Callaghan was seen as another lightweight, or at least, that's how I saw him. I was too involved with my new boyfriend, and my wedding and baby to be bothered with anything he did. But I remember the strikes, the strikes, and some more strikes. Crisis? What crisis? he asked.

Thatcher made a real impact. She made necessary changes, because the country did have to be hauled into the 20th century. Wilson had paved the way, but he overspent, leaving debts Callaghan couldn't cope with, which Thatcher managed to reduce. On the other hand, she sold off too many national assets, from State-owned utilities to Council Houses. She failed to compromise with the unions, though the unions also failed to compromise with her. But this left a manufacturing void, which she made no effort to fill, except by encouraging banks and insurance companies to make money out of our money, with little in return. Her monetarism opened the doors to too many foreign countries who rushed to buy too many of our assets, which should have remained British-owned, if not State-owned. On Europe, she was right, and it destroyed her. In fact, at the time, her stance on Europe was the only thing where I was actually in agreement with her.

John Major quietly got on with things, but I always had a sneaking admiration for him. A working-class Brixton boy without a formal higher education, he was the embodiment of the American ideal, that anybody can become Prime Minister, which Thatcher had encouraged and developed. He left a vibrant economy for the next Labour Government to inherit, and destroy.

Tony Blair was attractive, but a disaster. He acted his way through his No 10 years, saying the right things at the right time, but often doing the wrong things at the wrong time. While the Heath Government dug in to the destruction of the British Education system, Blair continued it, by letting everybody pass their exams and go to university, but to achieve this, the whole system had to be dumbed down. Now, there is so much ignorance around, it is terrifyingly sad, yet an entire generation thinks they've had the best education, ever. When they mature, they will realise just how little they really know. The ten years of education under Blair has produced a mixed generation of unemployable feral youth and youngsters who expect high wages and are unprepared to start at the bottom of the career ladder.

Cameron was an effective Opposition Leader, but has proved impotent as a Prime Minister, and I lay that at the door of the highly unintelligent Clegg and Cameron's lack of conviction. The Millibands are career Marxists, trained from birth to be politicians and receive high office, which means they will say whatever the Left-Wing wants to hear in order to secure power. The reality of this was demonstrated when one brother betrayed the other, more politically-talented, brother and we are left with a little baby as our next prospective PM. If I am worried about what has gone on before, then it is nothing to what will happen if Ed Milliband becomes the next PM.

The best Prime Minister in my lifetime? Probably John Major.

Excellent post, a nice sumation of PM's during most of my life time too.

 

[John Bumlick]

Each and every one of them.

Evil, power-crazed witch, who allowed thousands of British soldiers to die in order to win an election.

thousands?

 

[TonyW]

thousands?

Ok, hundreds, but there were several hundred "enemy" soldiers killed too, plus a few islanders.

Just out of interest, how many is acceptable in order to win an election you wouldn't ordinarily have stood a chance in?

 

[Randsta]

I'm in my early 30's so didn't really experience much of the hate for Thatcher as I was too young TBH they have all been awful imho but Gordon Brown has to be up there with the worst! - better erm I dont know?

 

[John Bumlick]

Ok, hundreds, but there were several hundred "enemy" soldiers killed too, plus a few islanders.

Just out of interest, how many is acceptable in order to win an election you wouldn't ordinarily have stood a chance in?

i am 100% on your side in this matter. was merely pointing out an inaccuracy and unnecessary exaggeration.

 

[TonyW]

i am 100% on your side in this matter. was merely pointing out an inaccuracy and unnecessary exaggeration.

I'm a Brighton fan, was born to exaggerate

As for unnecessary.
Nothing is unnecessary when describing that evil personified.

 

[kevtherev]

Are there really that many 80+ year olds posting on this forum or are there just a load of idiots. Attlee held office between 45-51. so left office 62 years ago. Going on the basis I reckon you need to be at least 18 to understand politics(and that's being generous as in the day there would not have been hardly any media coverage, unlike today)....That would mean all these people saying Attlee have to be at the very least 80 yrs old.....If that's you then fair play to you, you have my full respect. If it's not, you have just made yourself look very stupid indeed...... No wonder you don't realize how fantastic Maggie was.

 

[HovaGirl]

The main reason why Mrs T got elected in the first place was a backlash because we were already in the basement courtesy of weak old Labour and strong Unions who between them had dug a deep black hole, pushed us into it and started to shovel the soil on top. Economically the UK was bust having already been propped up by the IMF and it needed someone with balls to come and take the difficult decisions that somehow kept us going.

As mentioned in an earlier post I dread to think what might have happened if old Labour had got re-elected in '79 and perpetuated their policies, the country would have gone bankrupt. I was a labour party member and union official in the late 70'/80s and full of youthful rage against the machine but realistically looking back at the bigger picture the unions didn't care too much about their members or the country, it was all about smashing the Govt, whatever political colour it was. Ok many jobs may have been saved in the short term as the Unions exercised their stranglehold over a weak Labour party, but untold damage would have been done in the medium/long term. Possibly even worse than Mrs. T's impact. It was the extreme left Unionists who then drove many of their more pragmatic members away in the '80s and '90s, they were so out of touch.

That doesn't excuse some of Mrs.T's policies, she certainly wasn't Mother Teresa and still has a lot to answer for but I have to acknowledge that she had balls, which highlights just how lame more recent generations of politicians have been. I don't particularly rate Blair as a PM, he had an easy ride after Mrs T. and John Major.

Blair could do no wrong, he inherited an economy in a far better state, the unions were less of a problem for him, he cherry picked the best of Mrs.T's policies and moved New Labour to the centre ground. He was shrewd enough to deliver a range of sugar coated sweetners to the electorate. For me Blair recognised that it was important to make the country feel good. Much of this was acheived through maintaining Tory strategies and by all out PR and spin. Blair merely seized the moment rather than actually being a stellar PM.

I wasn't alive when Attlee was in power but I'm old enough to be among the generation that benefitted, so can understand why he is highly regarded. So in answer to the OP's question - on balance Mrs. T probably gets my (reluctant) vote. And that's from a disillusioned 'old leftie'.

Good post.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Are there really that many 80+ year olds posting on this forum or are there just a load of idiots.

Where is your sense of humour ?

Only Lord B falls into that category as far as I know.

 

[beorhthelm]

all the votes for Attlee are a damning indictment of the other four Labour PM's arent they?

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Harold Wilson

 

[Poyetry In Motion]

Not much to choose from in my life....
Heath, Wilson, Callaghan, Thatcher, Major, Blair, Brown, Dave

Not necessarily the best PM, but the most influential in my life would be Mrs T

 

[BigGully]

3 pages and no mention of Churchill.

Interesting what a little bit of knowledge can do !!!

Up until Thatchers death, most never knew that Churchill was quite so unpopular at the time, so unless your a Thatcher fan you are just cutting and pasting from the last 48 hours news programmes.

 

[jevs]

Such a shame Michael Foot never became PM, he would've got my vote !!!!!!