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Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher was the daughter of a grocer. She did well at school, and went to Oxford University where she studied chemistry. She became chairperson of Oxford University Conservative Association in 1946. She was the third woman to hold the post. She was elected to Parliament in 1959. She worked her way through the ranks of the party and in 1970 she became Education Minister. One of the first things she did was to stop distributing free milk in schools. This made her one of the most unpopular women in Britain with the nickname "Maggie Thatcher, milk snatcher". In 1975 she became leader of the Conservative Party. She quickly became known as 'the Iron Lady' for her strong will and determination. She became Britain's first female Prime Minister in 1979. In 1982 Argentina invaded the Falklands Islands and Britain went to war.

The British press backed Margaret Thatcher throughout the war and Britain's victory was seen as a personal triumph for the Prime Minister. While Margaret Thatcher was in power she closed many of the manufacturing industries, including coal mines. She was a close political ally of Ronald Reagan and believed in free markets. The introduction of 'poll tax' was undoubtedly the most unpopular policy of her leadership. Poll tax was a tax paid by each adult in a house and it replaced another tax called 'rates' which had been applied to the building. Many people felt this was unfair on poor people because the size of the house was not taken into consideration. The tax was introduced first in Scotland and many people refused to pay it.

Poll tax is thought to be a major factor in Margaret Thatcher's downfall. She resigned as Prime Minister in 1990.

(Real World Module 1 Page 11)

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