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Changing party fortunes (1918-31) - Coggle Diagram
Changing party fortunes (1918-31)
Who was charge
Baldwin 1923-24
MacDonald (Labour) Jan 1924 - Nov 1924
Bonar Law (Tory) 1922-23
Baldwin (Tory) - 1924-29
DLG (Liberal) 1918-22
MacDonald (Labour) 1929-31
Liberals decline
Confusion about leader
Asquith continued to be leader of the Liberal party
People were confused on who they were voting for
Asquith was forced to resign in 1916 and DLG became PM until 1922
Many voted for the 'Liberal Party' whereas others voted for DLG's Coalition
Gallipoli campaign (1915)
Caused a shortage of ammo and government collapsed
Liberal government misjudged the campaign and were heavily beaten
Asquith personality
For an important meeting he dressed for golf and was keen to leave
Was indecisive when in control of the war office and military strategy
Causing dismay in a meeting during WWI because it was at 8am
Taxes for social reforms
Rich were not happy with the tax rate of 30% in 1918
As poor people could not afford this, they could not vote for this so the rich did not want their tax rates to increase
Liberal's wanted to implement free school meals (1906) Labour exchange (1909) which would be funded through taxes
80% were working class
Rise of Labour (1924)
War led to a growth of trade union membership which funded Labour through membership fees
Labour was able to represent a sense of working-class identity which won supporters from the Liberals
Labour remained united, showing stability
MacDonald ruled with economic caution and impressed everyone with his foreign affairs
Bonar Law dies and Baldwin loses vote of confidence
Labour would lose the 1924 election as the Zinovivev letter caused a red scare which suggested Labour was working with the Russians to take over with a communist revolution
Baldwin's Britain
Attracted wealthy and middle-class Liberals as the best defence against Labour socialism
1921 Irish Free State gained independence from the UK, Liberals lost 80 MPs where as Tories still had support
Adopted protectionism making foreign goods expensive
First past the post benefited conservatives as they needed 15,000 votes for 1 MP compared to Labour who needed 29,000
Until 1948 people at uni could vote both at home and in their uni city, Oxbridge and City of London were allowed 14 MPs
Baldwin removed Liberal's free trade which was opposed by many landowners
Baldwin appealed to working classes by running factories fairly and enforced regulations
1929 election
Tories classed as dull 'safety first' identical policies
First election where women could vote equally
Hung parliament as Labour gained support due to mass unemployment following the 1926 General Strike
Aftermath of 1929 election
Labour did not want to cut spending due to financial crisis but MacDonald did it anyway
Wall Street Crash caused massive depression across Britain