Political Pressure and Economic Policy

Political Pressure and Economic Policy: British Government 1970-1974 discusses the shift in British economic policy following the electoral victory of the Conservatives in 1970. It attempts to explain not just the immediate reasons for the policy reversals, but also the political context in which they were made in terms of the difficulty of sustaining the “Quiet Revolution” policies when they so clearly appeared to contradict the post-war Keynesian consensus to which the Conservative Party was still committed. The book is organized into three parts. Part I discusses the events leading up to the “Quiet Revolution,” which involved major policy reversals that led the Conservative Party towards a path radically different from the status quo. Part II examines specific policy changes such as passage of the Industrial Relations Act; the U-turn over industry policy; the “N minus 1” policy; and the “Health dilemma” strategy. Part III focuses on Mr. Edward Heath's Prime Ministerial style of Government.