Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1990
Encyclopedia
The 1990 Conservative Party
leadership election in the United Kingdom
took place in November 1990 following the decision of former Defence
and Environment Secretary
Michael Heseltine
to stand against the incumbent Conservative leader and Prime Minister
, Margaret Thatcher
.
Thatcher failed to win outright under the terms of the election in the first ballot, and was persuaded to withdraw from the second round of voting. This marked the end of her eleven-year premiership and resulted in the election of John Major
, then Chancellor of the Exchequer
, as her successor.
for the leadership for the first time since her election
in 1975, by the backbench MP
Sir Anthony Meyer
. Thatcher faced no serious threat of losing to this stalking horse
challenger, but her political impregnability was undermined by the fact that sixty MPs had not voted for her.
Throughout 1990, Thatcher's popularity — and that of the Conservative government
— waned considerably. Whereas in 1987 Thatcher had presided over an economic boom, by 1989-90 interest rates had to be hiked to 15% to cool inflation which was now in double digits - and by late 1990 the economy was in recession. The introduction of the deeply unpopular Community Charge
(labelled 'Poll Tax') had been greeted with widespread non-payment and even a riot in Trafalgar Square in April 1990. Labour held a lead in most of the opinion polls since mid 1989 and at the height of the Poll tax controversy, one opinion poll had shown Labour support in excess of 50% with a lead of more than 20 points over the Tories.
There were differences within the Cabinet over Thatcher's perceived intransigence in her approach to the European Economic Community
— in particular many leading Conservatives wanted Britain to join the Exchange Rate Mechanism, a move which Thatcher did not favour. In 1989 the then Foreign Secretary Sir Geoffrey Howe and Chancellor Nigel Lawson
forced Thatcher to agree to the "Madrid Conditions", namely that Britain would eventually join the ERM "when the time was right". In July 1989 she retaliated by removing Howe from the Foreign Office, moving him to Deputy Prime Minister
. Lawson - who had clashed with Thatcher over "shadowing the Deutschmark" early in 1988 - then resigned as Chancellor in October 1989, unable to accept Thatcher taking independent advice from the economist Alan Walters
. The beneficiary of these moves was the hitherto-unknown Chief Secretary to the Treasury, John Major
, who briefly succeeded Howe as Foreign Secretary before succeeding Lawson as Chancellor, putting him in pole position to succeed Thatcher. In October 1990 Major and Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd
finally obtained agreement from a reluctant Thatcher that Britain should join the ERM.
In her Party Conference Speech early in October, Thatcher mocked the Liberal Democrats
' new "bird" logo in language lifted from the famous "Monty Python
" "Dead Parrot
" sketch. This looked more than slightly foolish when the Liberal Democrats captured a seat off the Conservatives at the Eastbourne by-election
(caused by the assassination of Ian Gow
by the IRA
at the end of July) on 18 October.
The event normally seen as the 'final straw' in the run-up to the contest is the resignation
of the Deputy Prime Minister
, Sir Geoffrey Howe, on 1 November. This was a response to comments by Thatcher in the House of Commons
on 31 October, when she criticised the vision of European integration, including a Single Currency, espoused by the European Commission
under Jacques Delors
, characterising it as the path to a federal European superstate, and famously declared that her response to such a vision would be "No. No. No" (In June 1990 Chancellor Major had suggested that the proposed Single European Currency should be a "hard ecu", competing for use against existing national currencies; this idea was not in the end adopted).
Howe did not make his resignation speech immediately because he had temporarily lost his voice. At the Lord Mayor's Banquet on 12 November Thatcher dismissed Howe's resignation by employing a cricketing metaphor:
The next day, Howe made his resignation speech from the backbenches, addressing his dismay at her approach and, famously responding to Thatcher's cricketing metaphor by employing one of his own. Explaining how, in his opinion, her approach made it hard for British ministers to negotiate for Britain's interests in Europe he declared:
Howe reinforced the change in general perception of Thatcher from the 'Iron Lady
' to a divisive and confrontational figure. Within a week, another critic, former minister Michael Heseltine
, had announced that he would challenge her for the leadership of the party.
, with that committee's chairman, Cranley Onslow
, serving as Returning Officer.
In the first round a candidate needed to win the backing of an absolute majority of MPs. In addition they needed to have a margin over their nearest rival of 15% of the total electorate. This latter rule had been modified from 15% of those voting in the 1975 review and was to prove a crucial distinction in the 1990 contest when Margaret Thatcher narrowly missed this new target.
If neither candidate achieved a sufficiently large majority, then a second ballot would take place the following week. Nominations would be re-opened, and at this stage an absolute majority only would be required. If this did not happen, then the top three candidates would go forward to a third round which would be held using the alternative vote system.
Because of this process, the first round was widely regarded as the real test of confidence in Thatcher. Many speculated that, if she did not achieve outright victory, then she would either be forced to step down and open up the field to others or else suffer further challenges from heavyweight figures in the party. Although Heseltine was known to be a serious contender for the leadership in his own right, many saw him also fulfilling the role of a "stalking horse
" to push Thatcher out and pave the way for victory by a third candidate in a later round.
European summit on the night of the contest and therefore voted by proxy, perhaps anticipating a better result than she actually achieved.
Although receiving the support of a clear majority of MPs, Thatcher narrowly failed to achieve a lead over Heseltine that comprised at least 15% of the number of all Conservative MPs, abstentions and spoilt ballots included. (Had the contest been run on the pre 1975 rules, she would have won outright at this stage.) The contest therefore had to move into a second ballot. Thatcher gave a short statement in Paris following the announcement of the result, declaring that she intended to contest the second ballot, and on her return to London declared "I fight on; I fight to win."
Hurd and Major pledged their support, as did Cecil Parkinson
, Kenneth Baker
and ex-Cabinet minister Nicholas Ridley. Norman Tebbit
, another ex-Cabinet minister, was part of her campaign team, along with John Wakeham
. Thatcher's campaign manager, Peter Morrison
, advised her to consult Cabinet members one by one. Cabinet ministers had decided before consulting Thatcher the line they would each take: though they personally would support her in the second ballot, they thought that she would lose. Peter Lilley
, William Waldegrave
, John Gummer
and Chris Patten
stuck to this line. Kenneth Clarke
, the Secretary of State for Education, famously became the first of her ministers to advise her that she could not win but that he would support her as Prime Minister for another five or ten years. Malcolm Rifkind
said she would not win and was unsure whether he could support her in the second ballot. Peter Brooke
said he would support Thatcher whatever she chose to do and that she could win "with all guns blazing". Michael Howard
doubted whether she could win but said he would campaign full-heartedly for her.
Thatcher therefore decided to withdraw her candidacy on Thursday 22 November 1990. As a result of this, two further candidates allowed themselves to be nominated: the Foreign Secretary
Douglas Hurd
and the Chancellor of the Exchequer
John Major
.
Major, seen as relatively new blood in the government, secured a commanding lead - although with fewer votes than Thatcher had obtained in the first ballot - of 185 votes to Michael Heseltine's 131 votes and Douglas Hurd's 56. Even so, this was technically a few votes short of a clear victory and a third round would have been held on Thursday 29 November 1990. However, within minutes of the result, Heseltine and Hurd withdrew from the contest in Major's favour. It was therefore announced by the Chairman of the 1922 Committee
, Cranley Onslow, that no third round would be necessary, and that Major was elected unopposed.
, marked her resignation with the front page headline "MRS T-EARS" - in reference to her breaking down in tears after announcing her resignation.
Labour
opposition leader Neil Kinnock
(whose party had been ascendant in the opinion polls since the announcement of the Poll tax more than a year earlier) described Mrs Thatcher's resignation as "very good news" and demanded an immediate general election.
invited Major to kiss hands the next day. Douglas Hurd was re-appointed as Foreign Secretary and Michael Heseltine returned to the Cabinet as Environment Secretary
, a post he had held in the early 1980s. Both Hurd and Heseltine remained key figures during the Major government, Heseltine eventually rising to become Deputy Prime Minister in 1995.
Major's premiership
began well, and he was credited with restoring a consensual style of Cabinet government after the years of forceful leadership under Margaret Thatcher. The First Gulf War in early 1991 contributed to strong public support. He secured some foreign policy successes in Europe
, negotiating the Maastricht Treaty
after securing an opt-out from the Social Chapter
and the single currency
, and he sprung a surprise victory in the 1992 election, securing a majority of 21 seats.
Nevertheless the political tides soon turned. The government's reputation for economic competence was destroyed by Britain's ejection from the Exchange Rate Mechanism in September 1992, leading to inevitable protests e.g. from Norman Tebbit at the 1992 Party Conference, that the Conservatives had been wrong to ignore Thatcher's wishes to stay out (whether Britain entered the ERM at too high an exchange rate has been a source of debate ever since). Apart from a brief period during the fuel protests in 2000 the Conservatives would not again enjoy an opinion poll lead until after the election of David Cameron as leader in 2005. The ongoing rebellion in the first half of 1993 by Conservative backbenchers against the passage of the Maastricht Treaty through the House of Commons was also deeply damaging to the government. Many of the Maastricht rebels were Thatcher supporters, and one of them, Teresa Gorman, devoted the opening chapter of her memoir of the incident to an account of the 1990 leadership contest. The massive Conservative defeat in 1997 was thus attributable, at least in part, to the perception of internal division over Europe which had first been exposed by the 1990 leadership election.
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
leadership election in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
took place in November 1990 following the decision of former Defence
Secretary of State for Defence
The Secretary of State for Defence, popularly known as the Defence Secretary, is the senior Government of the United Kingdom minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence, chairing the Defence Council. It is a Cabinet position...
and Environment Secretary
Secretary of State for the Environment
The Secretary of State for the Environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment . This was created by Edward Heath as a combination of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Public Building and Works on 15...
Michael Heseltine
Michael Heseltine
Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group. He was a Member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001 and was a prominent figure in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major...
to stand against the incumbent Conservative leader and Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
.
Thatcher failed to win outright under the terms of the election in the first ballot, and was persuaded to withdraw from the second round of voting. This marked the end of her eleven-year premiership and resulted in the election of John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
, then Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
, as her successor.
Background to the contest
Discontent with Thatcher's leadership of the party had been growing over the latter years of her tenure. In December 1989, she had been challengedConservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1989
The 1989 Conservative Party leadership election took place on 5 December 1989. The incumbent Margaret Thatcher was opposed by the little known 69-year-old backbencher MP Sir Anthony Meyer, Bt.-Background:...
for the leadership for the first time since her election
Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1975
Edward Heath, leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom had called and unexpectedly lost the February 1974 general election...
in 1975, by the backbench MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Sir Anthony Meyer
Anthony Meyer
Sir Anthony John Charles Meyer, 3rd Baronet was a British soldier, diplomat, and Conservative and later Liberal Democrat politician, best known for standing against Margaret Thatcher for the party leadership in 1989...
. Thatcher faced no serious threat of losing to this stalking horse
Stalking horse
A stalking horse is a person who tests a concept with someone or mounts a challenge against them on behalf of an anonymous third party. If the idea proves viable and/or popular, the anonymous figure can then declare their interest and advance the concept with little risk of failure...
challenger, but her political impregnability was undermined by the fact that sixty MPs had not voted for her.
Throughout 1990, Thatcher's popularity — and that of the Conservative government
Thatcher Ministry
Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom between 4 May 1979 and 28 November 1990, during which time she led a Conservative government. She was the first woman to hold that office...
— waned considerably. Whereas in 1987 Thatcher had presided over an economic boom, by 1989-90 interest rates had to be hiked to 15% to cool inflation which was now in double digits - and by late 1990 the economy was in recession. The introduction of the deeply unpopular Community Charge
Community Charge
The Community Charge, popularly known as the "poll tax", was a system of taxation introduced in replacement of the rates to part fund local government in Scotland from 1989, and England and Wales from 1990. It provided for a single flat-rate per-capita tax on every adult, at a rate set by the...
(labelled 'Poll Tax') had been greeted with widespread non-payment and even a riot in Trafalgar Square in April 1990. Labour held a lead in most of the opinion polls since mid 1989 and at the height of the Poll tax controversy, one opinion poll had shown Labour support in excess of 50% with a lead of more than 20 points over the Tories.
There were differences within the Cabinet over Thatcher's perceived intransigence in her approach to the European Economic Community
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
— in particular many leading Conservatives wanted Britain to join the Exchange Rate Mechanism, a move which Thatcher did not favour. In 1989 the then Foreign Secretary Sir Geoffrey Howe and Chancellor Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, PC , is a British Conservative politician and journalist. He was a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974–92, and served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the government of Margaret Thatcher from June 1983 to October 1989...
forced Thatcher to agree to the "Madrid Conditions", namely that Britain would eventually join the ERM "when the time was right". In July 1989 she retaliated by removing Howe from the Foreign Office, moving him to Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a senior member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The office of the Deputy Prime Minister is not a permanent position, existing only at the discretion of the Prime Minister, who may appoint to other offices...
. Lawson - who had clashed with Thatcher over "shadowing the Deutschmark" early in 1988 - then resigned as Chancellor in October 1989, unable to accept Thatcher taking independent advice from the economist Alan Walters
Alan Walters
Professor Sir Alan Arthur Walters was a British economist, best known as the former Chief Economic Adviser to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1981 to 1983 and again in 1989 after his return from the USA.- Early life :...
. The beneficiary of these moves was the hitherto-unknown Chief Secretary to the Treasury, John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
, who briefly succeeded Howe as Foreign Secretary before succeeding Lawson as Chancellor, putting him in pole position to succeed Thatcher. In October 1990 Major and Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd
Douglas Hurd
Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, CH, CBE, PC , is a British Conservative politician and novelist, who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and his retirement in 1995....
finally obtained agreement from a reluctant Thatcher that Britain should join the ERM.
In her Party Conference Speech early in October, Thatcher mocked the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
' new "bird" logo in language lifted from the famous "Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
" "Dead Parrot
Dead Parrot
The "Dead Parrot Sketch", alternatively and originally known as the "Pet Shop Sketch" or "Parrot Sketch", is a popular sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus, and one of the most famous in the history of British television comedy...
" sketch. This looked more than slightly foolish when the Liberal Democrats captured a seat off the Conservatives at the Eastbourne by-election
Eastbourne by-election, 1990
The Eastbourne by-election, 1990 was a by-election held on 18 October 1990 for the British House of Commons constituency of Eastbourne in East Sussex....
(caused by the assassination of Ian Gow
Ian Gow
Ian Reginald Edward Gow TD was a British Conservative politician and solicitor. While serving as Member of Parliament for Eastbourne, he was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army who exploded a bomb under his car outside his home in East Sussex.-Life:Ian Gow was born at 3 Upper...
by the IRA
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
at the end of July) on 18 October.
The event normally seen as the 'final straw' in the run-up to the contest is the resignation
Resignation
A resignation is the formal act of giving up or quitting one's office or position. It can also refer to the act of admitting defeat in a game like chess, indicated by the resigning player declaring "I resign", turning his king on its side, extending his hand, or stopping the chess clock...
of the Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a senior member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The office of the Deputy Prime Minister is not a permanent position, existing only at the discretion of the Prime Minister, who may appoint to other offices...
, Sir Geoffrey Howe, on 1 November. This was a response to comments by Thatcher in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
on 31 October, when she criticised the vision of European integration, including a Single Currency, espoused by the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
under Jacques Delors
Jacques Delors
Jacques Lucien Jean Delors is a French economist and politician, the eighth President of the European Commission and the first person to serve three terms in that office .-French Politics:...
, characterising it as the path to a federal European superstate, and famously declared that her response to such a vision would be "No. No. No" (In June 1990 Chancellor Major had suggested that the proposed Single European Currency should be a "hard ecu", competing for use against existing national currencies; this idea was not in the end adopted).
Howe did not make his resignation speech immediately because he had temporarily lost his voice. At the Lord Mayor's Banquet on 12 November Thatcher dismissed Howe's resignation by employing a cricketing metaphor:
I am still at the crease, though the bowling has been pretty hostile of late. And in case anyone doubted it, can I assure you there will be no ducking the bouncers, no stonewalling, no playing for time. The bowling's going to get hit all round the ground. That is my style.
The next day, Howe made his resignation speech from the backbenches, addressing his dismay at her approach and, famously responding to Thatcher's cricketing metaphor by employing one of his own. Explaining how, in his opinion, her approach made it hard for British ministers to negotiate for Britain's interests in Europe he declared:
It is rather like sending your opening batsmen to the crease only for them to find, the moment the first balls are bowled, that their bats have been broken before the game by the team captain.
Howe reinforced the change in general perception of Thatcher from the 'Iron Lady
Iron Lady
Iron Lady is a nickname that has frequently been used to describe female heads of government around the world. The term describes a "strong willed" woman...
' to a divisive and confrontational figure. Within a week, another critic, former minister Michael Heseltine
Michael Heseltine
Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group. He was a Member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001 and was a prominent figure in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major...
, had announced that he would challenge her for the leadership of the party.
Contest rules
Under the rules at the time, introduced in 1965 and modified in 1975, there would be a series of ballots, conducted by the 1922 Committee1922 Committee
In British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
, with that committee's chairman, Cranley Onslow
Cranley Onslow
Cranley Gordon Douglas Onslow, Baron Onslow of Woking KCMG PC was a British politician and served as the Conservative MP for Woking from 1964 to 1997....
, serving as Returning Officer.
In the first round a candidate needed to win the backing of an absolute majority of MPs. In addition they needed to have a margin over their nearest rival of 15% of the total electorate. This latter rule had been modified from 15% of those voting in the 1975 review and was to prove a crucial distinction in the 1990 contest when Margaret Thatcher narrowly missed this new target.
If neither candidate achieved a sufficiently large majority, then a second ballot would take place the following week. Nominations would be re-opened, and at this stage an absolute majority only would be required. If this did not happen, then the top three candidates would go forward to a third round which would be held using the alternative vote system.
Because of this process, the first round was widely regarded as the real test of confidence in Thatcher. Many speculated that, if she did not achieve outright victory, then she would either be forced to step down and open up the field to others or else suffer further challenges from heavyweight figures in the party. Although Heseltine was known to be a serious contender for the leadership in his own right, many saw him also fulfilling the role of a "stalking horse
Stalking horse
A stalking horse is a person who tests a concept with someone or mounts a challenge against them on behalf of an anonymous third party. If the idea proves viable and/or popular, the anonymous figure can then declare their interest and advance the concept with little risk of failure...
" to push Thatcher out and pave the way for victory by a third candidate in a later round.
First ballot
The first ballot in the election took place on Tuesday 20 November 1990. Thatcher herself was at the FontainebleauFontainebleau
Fontainebleau is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the arrondissement of Fontainebleau...
European summit on the night of the contest and therefore voted by proxy, perhaps anticipating a better result than she actually achieved.
| First ballot: 20 November 1990 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Margaret Thatcher Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990... |
204 | 54.8 | |
| Michael Heseltine Michael Heseltine Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group. He was a Member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001 and was a prominent figure in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major... |
152 | 40.9 | |
| Abstentions | 16 | 4.3 | |
| Majority | 52 | 14.0 | |
| Electorate | 372 | ||
| Second Ballot required | |||
Although receiving the support of a clear majority of MPs, Thatcher narrowly failed to achieve a lead over Heseltine that comprised at least 15% of the number of all Conservative MPs, abstentions and spoilt ballots included. (Had the contest been run on the pre 1975 rules, she would have won outright at this stage.) The contest therefore had to move into a second ballot. Thatcher gave a short statement in Paris following the announcement of the result, declaring that she intended to contest the second ballot, and on her return to London declared "I fight on; I fight to win."
Hurd and Major pledged their support, as did Cecil Parkinson
Cecil Parkinson
Cecil Parkinson, Baron Parkinson, PC , is a British Conservative politician and former Cabinet Minister.-Early life:...
, Kenneth Baker
Kenneth Baker
Kenneth Wilfred Baker, Baron Baker of Dorking, CH, PC , is a British politician, a former Conservative MP and a Life Member of the Tory Reform Group.-Early life:...
and ex-Cabinet minister Nicholas Ridley. Norman Tebbit
Norman Tebbit
Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment...
, another ex-Cabinet minister, was part of her campaign team, along with John Wakeham
John Wakeham
John Wakeham, Baron Wakeham, PC, DL is a businessman and British Conservative Party politician and the current Chancellor of Brunel University.He was a director of Enron from 1994 until its bankruptcy in 2001....
. Thatcher's campaign manager, Peter Morrison
Peter Morrison
Sir Peter Hugh Morrison PC was a British Conservative politician, MP for Chester from 1974 to 1992, and Parliamentary Private Secretary to former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.-Education:...
, advised her to consult Cabinet members one by one. Cabinet ministers had decided before consulting Thatcher the line they would each take: though they personally would support her in the second ballot, they thought that she would lose. Peter Lilley
Peter Lilley
Peter Bruce Lilley MP is a British Conservative Party politician who has been a Member of Parliament MP since 1983. He currently represents the constituency of Hitchin and Harpenden and, prior to boundary changes, represented St Albans...
, William Waldegrave
William Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill
William Arthur Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill, PC , is an English Conservative politician who served in the Cabinet from 1990 until 1997 and is a Life Member of the Tory Reform Group. He is now a life peer. Lord Waldegrave is also the Chairman of the Rhodes Trust and the Chairman of...
, John Gummer
John Gummer
John Selwyn Gummer, Baron Deben, PC is a British Conservative Party politician, formerly Member of Parliament for Suffolk Coastal, now a member of the House of Lords. He is Chairman of the environmental consultancy company Sancroft International and Chairman of Veolia Water...
and Chris Patten
Chris Patten
Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes, CH, PC , is the last Governor of British Hong Kong, a former British Conservative politician, and the current chairman of the BBC Trust....
stuck to this line. Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Harry "Ken" Clarke, QC, MP is a British Conservative politician, currently Member of Parliament for Rushcliffe, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice. He was first elected to Parliament in 1970; and appointed a minister in Edward Heath's government, in 1972, and is one of...
, the Secretary of State for Education, famously became the first of her ministers to advise her that she could not win but that he would support her as Prime Minister for another five or ten years. Malcolm Rifkind
Malcolm Rifkind
Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind KCMG QC MP is a British Conservative Party politician and Member of Parliament for Kensington. He served in various roles as a cabinet minister under Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major, including Secretary of State for Scotland , Defence Secretary and...
said she would not win and was unsure whether he could support her in the second ballot. Peter Brooke
Peter Brooke
Peter Leonard Brooke, Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet under Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major, and was a Member of Parliament representing the Cities of London and Westminster from...
said he would support Thatcher whatever she chose to do and that she could win "with all guns blazing". Michael Howard
Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
doubted whether she could win but said he would campaign full-heartedly for her.
Thatcher therefore decided to withdraw her candidacy on Thursday 22 November 1990. As a result of this, two further candidates allowed themselves to be nominated: the Foreign Secretary
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
Douglas Hurd
Douglas Hurd
Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, CH, CBE, PC , is a British Conservative politician and novelist, who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and his retirement in 1995....
and the Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
.
Second ballot
The second round of voting took place on Tuesday 27 November 1990.| Second ballot: 27 November 1990 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
| John Major John Major Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997... |
185 | 49.7 | |
| Michael Heseltine Michael Heseltine Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group. He was a Member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001 and was a prominent figure in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major... |
131 | 35.2 | |
| Douglas Hurd Douglas Hurd Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, CH, CBE, PC , is a British Conservative politician and novelist, who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and his retirement in 1995.... |
56 | 15.1 | |
| Majority | 54 | 14.5 | |
| Turnout | 372 | ||
| Third ballot required | |||
Major, seen as relatively new blood in the government, secured a commanding lead - although with fewer votes than Thatcher had obtained in the first ballot - of 185 votes to Michael Heseltine's 131 votes and Douglas Hurd's 56. Even so, this was technically a few votes short of a clear victory and a third round would have been held on Thursday 29 November 1990. However, within minutes of the result, Heseltine and Hurd withdrew from the contest in Major's favour. It was therefore announced by the Chairman of the 1922 Committee
1922 Committee
In British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
, Cranley Onslow, that no third round would be necessary, and that Major was elected unopposed.
Reaction
The Sun newspaper, a firm supporter of Thatcher and her party since her election campaign in 1979United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
, marked her resignation with the front page headline "MRS T-EARS" - in reference to her breaking down in tears after announcing her resignation.
Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
opposition leader Neil Kinnock
Neil Kinnock
Neil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock is a Welsh politician belonging to the Labour Party. He served as a Member of Parliament from 1970 until 1995 and as Labour Leader and Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition from 1983 until 1992 - his leadership of the party during nearly nine years making him...
(whose party had been ascendant in the opinion polls since the announcement of the Poll tax more than a year earlier) described Mrs Thatcher's resignation as "very good news" and demanded an immediate general election.
Outcome
John Major was declared the leader of the party on the evening of Tuesday 27 November 1990. Following Thatcher's formal resignation, HM The QueenElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
invited Major to kiss hands the next day. Douglas Hurd was re-appointed as Foreign Secretary and Michael Heseltine returned to the Cabinet as Environment Secretary
Secretary of State for the Environment
The Secretary of State for the Environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment . This was created by Edward Heath as a combination of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Public Building and Works on 15...
, a post he had held in the early 1980s. Both Hurd and Heseltine remained key figures during the Major government, Heseltine eventually rising to become Deputy Prime Minister in 1995.
Major's premiership
Major Ministry
John Major was the Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for 6½ years from 28 November 1990 to 2 May 1997. He was first appointed Prime Minister having succeeded Margaret Thatcher as leader of the Conservative Party...
began well, and he was credited with restoring a consensual style of Cabinet government after the years of forceful leadership under Margaret Thatcher. The First Gulf War in early 1991 contributed to strong public support. He secured some foreign policy successes in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, negotiating the Maastricht Treaty
Maastricht Treaty
The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 by the members of the European Community in Maastricht, Netherlands. On 9–10 December 1991, the same city hosted the European Council which drafted the treaty...
after securing an opt-out from the Social Chapter
Social Chapter
The Social Chapter is the chapter of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam covering social policy issues, such as promotion of employment and improved living and working conditions. Prior to the Treaty of Amsterdam the "Agreement on Social Policy" protocol of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty was known as the...
and the single currency
Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union
The Economic and Monetary Union is an umbrella term for the group of policies aimed at converging the economies of members of the European Union in three stages so as to allow them to adopt a single currency, the euro. As such, it is largely synonymous with the eurozone.All member states of the...
, and he sprung a surprise victory in the 1992 election, securing a majority of 21 seats.
Nevertheless the political tides soon turned. The government's reputation for economic competence was destroyed by Britain's ejection from the Exchange Rate Mechanism in September 1992, leading to inevitable protests e.g. from Norman Tebbit at the 1992 Party Conference, that the Conservatives had been wrong to ignore Thatcher's wishes to stay out (whether Britain entered the ERM at too high an exchange rate has been a source of debate ever since). Apart from a brief period during the fuel protests in 2000 the Conservatives would not again enjoy an opinion poll lead until after the election of David Cameron as leader in 2005. The ongoing rebellion in the first half of 1993 by Conservative backbenchers against the passage of the Maastricht Treaty through the House of Commons was also deeply damaging to the government. Many of the Maastricht rebels were Thatcher supporters, and one of them, Teresa Gorman, devoted the opening chapter of her memoir of the incident to an account of the 1990 leadership contest. The massive Conservative defeat in 1997 was thus attributable, at least in part, to the perception of internal division over Europe which had first been exposed by the 1990 leadership election.