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For A Friend: July 1986 Election
The 3rd of July 1986 Election was one in which Peter Walker was rather happy about going into. The Conservative polls had been rather buoyant and the policies of ‘Inner City Rejuvenation’ and ‘New Britain, New Power’ had been rather popular. Walker’s dealing with Tommy Bartle and the NUM in a fairly even handed way meant that the Miners looked like reactionaries angry and the increased Anti-Coal, Green Energy push of Walker had caused the Miners Strike of 1984 to fizzle our fairly quickly. Walker also managed maintain his coalition of vying interests, balancing a campaign for AIDs awareness with a call for imposing stricter measures for under age Homosexual relations, which kept the Tory Right in side. Whilst the Liberalisation of the British Markets worried some and the Housing Sector was seeing a slow bubble emerging (helped by Jim Slater’s vigorous push into the renting sector), Walker was fairly confident of another Conservative victory.
Neil Kinnock on the other hand was dealing with an uphill battle in comparison. Labour Electoral College had voted for Kinnock in 82’ as the ‘Soft Left’ candidate as Benn and Hattersley presented image of Labour’s 82’ Electoral loss. But Kinnock soon found himself hated by both the Right and Left for different reasons. Kinnock’s supporting of the Miners in 84’ angered those who saw it as allowing Labour to seem old fashioned, whilst Kinnock’s attempts at calling out the Municipal Government of London and Liverpool over there attempts at a Rate Capping Rebellion, when Kinnock tried to call for charges against Ken Livingstone and John McDonnell, a near rebellion by the Labour Action Group and Socialist League caused him to back down and seem weak in the face of his Left Wing. Discussions of a leadership coup in late 1985 in which Roy Hattersley would take over from an ailing Kinnock and help lead a Right Wing coalition to victory was only stopped by a timely intervention from Denis Healey and a breakdown over who the potential candidate would be.
The events made Kinnock look weak and without allies, as only a few Kinnock supporters centred around Robin Cook and Bryan Gould seemed to provide support within the cabinet.
Meanwhile David Penhaligon had taken to his leadership role with vigour and began to campaign as the ‘New Force In British Politics’ which include modernising the party structure to OMOV, increasing the power of the Young National Liberal caucus and campaigning vigorously on Balanced Budgets, Increased Municipal Power/Devolution and Anti-Nuclear Power agenda. Whilst Penhaligon would face problems over his vigorous support for NATO within this would help him set himself out more particularly against Kinnock who wobbled on the discussion when presented the question.
The original plan for an election towards the end of Spring in 1986 were put on hold due to the twin international incidents of the 1986 Libyan Bombing Campaign and the Chernobyl disaster. With the Chernobyl disaster causing a massive reaction against nuclear power, it was decided that it was best that the party of ‘New Britain, New Power’ wait a few months before proceeding to an election. The few months would help the Tories secure a solid polling lead and Walker would pursue a Rose Garden Campaign in the Early Summer, heading to a number of world wide events and would meet Gorbachev at a Summit in Helsinki in which he pledged to help with the clean efforts for ‘the safety of all mankind’.
As Walker hop nobbed with world leaders and appeared on television every night, his Home Secretary Michael Heseltine and the Chancellor Alan Haselhurst would proclaim in a manifesto that Britian would see further prosperity in the near future and pledge to allow council tenants to buy there own houses and increased funding for the NHS after several leaner years due to austerity measures.
Labour meanwhile flailed, Roy Hattersley was accused off inadequate budget calculations as he tried to preach ‘Supply Side Socialism’, Kinnock appearance on David Frost in which he said that Britain could engage in underground warfare if the Soviets invaded and the Campaign Coordinator Jack Cunningham just barely escaped charges for assaulting a journalist. This combined with a manifesto that wasn’t properly costed, included unpopular policies on defence and was prepared in a hurry meant that Labour was constantly on the defensive instead of the offensive.
David Penhaligon would become the real victor of the 1986 campaign, going from a mild novelty to a television star, as he toured the country doing speeches and proclaiming a ‘Third Way’ for British Politics, as the Liberals had been whipped into shape in the intervening three years. Whilst some feared another Jeremy Thorpe on these hands, Penhaligon’s charm with the news channels and chat show circuit meant that he managed to pick up more support than previous leaders. Adding this was a coordinated campaign that used it’s Populist, Anti-Nuclear and Localist rhetoric to win over on the fence voters in the Tory shires and British cities.
In the end the electoral map had changed, but not in Labour’s favour. Whilst the Tories would lose nine seats there campaign had worked out fairly well, walking away with another substantial victory. Meanwhile Labour had gained two seats and whilst this was better than some had expected (some pundits believed Labour would lose seats) it was still an embarrassment to Kinnock and Labour who had hoped for more substantial shift.
The true victors though were the Liberals, with a swing of over seven percent and a gain of 18 seats, Penhaligon found himself having achieved what few other Liberal leaders had managed to do and make substantial gains across Britain as regional parties and the Tories felt themselves squeezed in result. Additionally the new increased eco conscious viewpoint of the Liberals would lead to discussions with the Greens in the years to come, uncomfortable at being sidelined, many of the Green 2000 groupings saw the possibility of further gains allying with the Liberals than continuing to be a minor party.
In the years to come Walker would continue to popular especially in the aftermath of the full implementation of the Right To Buy Scheme and Kinnock would head into a depression, finally packing it in 1988 after a disappointing by-election result in Glasgow Govan to the SNP. Penhaligon would continue to be the popular face of the Liberals and continue his modernisation efforts further to chagrin of the old guard. For many it seemed likely that the next government would probably include the Liberals in it, and discussions of the Liberals even becoming a major force in British politics.
And then in February 1989, in the aftermath of a party by Northern Ireland Minister and prominent Tory Right Winger Ian Gow, Walker and Gow would be grievously injured by a car bomb by the IRA. And all hell would break loose.
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Thanks again to @Comrade TruthTeller for providing the wiki box. Check the description below to read For A Friend in which this is the background of.
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