Reshaping the Economy: The Causes and Consequences of Margaret Thatcher's Privatisation Programme

This thesis will focus on the link between Thatcherism and privatisation, and what its consequences were for Britain and the rest of the world. The main question will be: was the rise of Thatcherism intrinsically linked to privatisation and what were its consequences for Britain and the rest of the world? In order to answer this question, the thesis is divided in three chapters. The first chapter will look at the British economy since 1945. The perceived post-war consensus, the relative decline, difficult industrial relations and high inflation led to a seemingly ungovernable situation in the 1970s, culminating in the Winter of Discontent. This created a fertile ground for Thatcherism’s radical policies with the British electorate. The second chapter will focus on the actual principles of Thatcherism and how these were shaped by circumstances and the work of think-tanks such as the Centre for Policy Studies. Disillusioned by the state of the country in the 1970s, Thatcher was drawn...Show moreThis thesis will focus on the link between Thatcherism and privatisation, and what its consequences were for Britain and the rest of the world. The main question will be: was the rise of Thatcherism intrinsically linked to privatisation and what were its consequences for Britain and the rest of the world? In order to answer this question, the thesis is divided in three chapters. The first chapter will look at the British economy since 1945. The perceived post-war consensus, the relative decline, difficult industrial relations and high inflation led to a seemingly ungovernable situation in the 1970s, culminating in the Winter of Discontent. This created a fertile ground for Thatcherism’s radical policies with the British electorate. The second chapter will focus on the actual principles of Thatcherism and how these were shaped by circumstances and the work of think-tanks such as the Centre for Policy Studies. Disillusioned by the state of the country in the 1970s, Thatcher was drawn to the radical policies of Keith Joseph. Only a radical break with the post-war consensus was seen by Joseph and her as the solution to Britain’s problems. Thatcherism was born out of this process of re-thinking the Conservative Party’s policy. Its main focus was controlling inflation, individual freedom and rolling back the frontiers of the state. The ultimate goal was creating a thriving enterprise economy. The third chapter looks at the large-scale privatisation programme under Thatcher. It analyses the state of the nationalised industries before 1979 and the economic policies during her administration, seeing a continuum with the overall objectives of the privatisation programme. One of the main objectives of this programme – the spreading of public ownership through shares – played a significant role in how privatisation was implemented from 1984 onwards. Privatisation through public share offering would eventually become the accepted privatisation method worldwide. The major privatisations of the 1980s reshaped Britain’s economic landscape and sparked privatisation programmes worldwide. In that regard, Thatcher’s privatisation programme changed the world economy. This thesis states that Thatcherism’s core principles and Thatcher’s privatisation programme were intrinsically linked to each other. The privatisation programme altered the British economy and inspired other countries to pursue a similar economic policy.Show less

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Reshaping the Economy: The Causes and Consequences of Margaret Thatcher's Privatisation Programme