Did Maggie Thatcher turn the UK economy around, or was it the £800 billion in north sea oil revenue?

Question

Did Maggie Thatcher turn the UK economy around, or was it the £800 billion in north sea oil revenue?

Answer 1

Hello,

Maggie Thatcher was undoubtably the most over rated leader in the history of the world. She managed to stay in power for 11 years by selling off nationalised institutions and hundreds of thousands of council houses, and then using the money to fund tax cuts to woo swing voters. Unfortunately for us, Labour came in a few years laters and didn't change things back!

Answer 2

Both!

Answer 3

The £800b and of course the proceeds from the sale of the 'family silver'........ surprising how many people have forgotten all that!

Answer 4

Bit like Brown and Blair - looked too good to start with, we then paid for the rapid growth and false economy. Much better to enjoy annual but controlled expansion of the economy, rather than boom and bust. At least you would know where you stand.

Answer 5

The privatised industries were losing a fortune because of the usual Public sector inefficiency. It cost us, the taxpayer, a fortune in subsidies. They only started to make money after they had been privatised and run efficiently by the private sector. That's why they were able to make so many people redundant, because many of the employees didn't actually have a job. Utility costs to the consumer came down enormously as a result.

Of course, the Thatcher Government turned the economy around. You obviously don't recall the dire financial state that the economy was in at the time. Bankrupt is the word, following a particularly bad Labour Government, and the actions of Trotskyist Union leaders. This current Government  is even worse, and North Sea revenue hasn't stopped it ruining the economy, as Labour always do.

I appreciate, however, that a few facts won't get in the way of the usual anti-Thatcher prejudice.

I don't know where the £800billion popped up from, but be assured, the Labour party had already started spending that in the 1970's, and they would have wasted the rest given half a chance.

Answer 6

The latter (along with a few other things - privatisation of everything in site).

The Thatch was bad.  For everything.

Answer 7

Thatcher without a doubt. If Callaghan got his grubby little hands on that £800bn he would've had a field day nationalising every company he could think of.

Thatcher used some of it to fund public services and saved some of it for a rainy day. This gave her more room to manouevre in the economy and encouraged businesses to do more business in Britain.

Answer 8

Both.

the privatisation and modernisation of national institutions was long overdue, britain was the 'sick man' of europe, the north sea oil & Gas revenue changed that, but on its own it wasnt enough.

unfotunately, labour has taken the approach of wasting all of our money on management (read mis-management) of these institutions. targets have now become more important than service as a result.

the open door policy for immigration has driven up demand in all economic and social sectors therefore driving up prices, cost of living and pressure on public services.

In conclusion, maggie wasnt too bad, she had the balls to do what needed doing and for a while (1990ish to present) we enjoyed the benefits

Answer 9

Yeah the oil was good.

The privatisation of everything was probably the better one though. That way the UK citizen bore all the costs and businesses became richer, thus the economy looked like it was getting better!

Answer 10

Yes - she did lay the foundations of our prosperity that Labour is wrecking.  Considering the robbery of the motorist by this rotten government it is surprising you have taken this tack.

Answer 11

£800 billion  where did you get that figure from?

Answer 12

I believe it was Maggie. You can give someone billions but then it's wasted, as with Gordon Brown. How much has he taken out of the pockets of the public in the last 11 years?

As I have said before, she took over from a diabolical Labour government in the 70's and turned this country around.

I don't suppose all those thousands of people who were able to buy their council house or flat,  wish they did not have the chance. When people gyp about the houses sold, I do not think for one minute, they would not do the same.

Answer 13

Maggie Thatcher broke this country forever. She sold off our national industries to the highest bidder and left the people who needed help to the wolves. The boom and bust economy under her leadership also harmed the country.

She once said: "No-one would remember the Good Samaritan if he'd only had good intentions. He had money as well."

Answer 14

No.

Oil revenue was already pouring in since the price rises of 1973 and 1979.

At that time Labour was in charge.

It was under the two super-geniuses Callaghan and Wilson that the UK contracted the greatest debts ever and became as solvent as Nigeria.

Callaghan and his r****d Healey were set on going to the IMF with begging bowl and cap in hand.

Labour was causing industrial losses of greater than 20 million pounds per day due to their encouragement of militant Unions like the NMU

Labour caused the second (at the time) largest EXODUS of British to Australia since the 1950's and the Penal Era.

This figure was beaten again by another Labour government- Blair and Brown- where now the UK has the highest brain drain of any OECD nation.

Stop onanising over your Socialist Worker's Magazine and your Neslon Mandela centrefolds. They're as full of S**t as your argument.

It is a total falsity that Labour can do anything numerically competent- they are innumerate mental incompetents.

Every time Labour is in power- it totally snookers the nation.

Answer 15

the oil of course

she give everyone the right to buy their council house and hey presto no more cheap housing anymore

Answer 16

She encouraged entreprenurship, a thing that this labour government puts many obstacles to.