Breaking the Mould Redux: A Wikibox Timeline

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Voters sent a brutal message in elections to local authorities throughout England and Wales, as the Tories lost control of all remaining non-metropolitan councils to the Alliance. Labour mostly held their own. Michael Heseltine's party saw sweeping losses across the 39 shire counties and eight Welsh authorities, with a net tally of minus 1,835 seats. Heseltine was forced to admit they had plunged to "a painful defeat" amid what he called "testing times", brought about by the 1983 general election wipe-out and the internal troubles afflicting the party. On a whistle-stop visit to Essex, David Steel praised the work of Liberal activists and described the opposition as "chaotic", lurching from one "shambles" to another. Shirley Williams' party had done well, with ministers such as David Owen visible on the doorstep in Labour-leaning areas, permitting the Liberals to target Conservative heartlands. The Alliance won almost 2,000 seats and gained many councils, including Devon, Herefordshire, Oxfordshire, East Sussex and North Yorkshire. Former Tory MP Alan Clark, writing in his diary shortly after the election, stated: "Some stupid prick has done a 'projection' in one of the heavies showing that the SDP will have an overall majority in the House of Commons". The extent of the Alliance's triumph might have been exaggerated; nevertheless, its new local government power was real and so was the boost to morale. On the British mainland, the Unionists scored 8.4% of the popular vote but failed to win any councillors, disappointing Enoch Powell. This was still an impressive result which ate into the Conservative base, robbing Mr Heseltine's party of a comeback under the old electoral system. Ulster Unionists were more than happy to have emerged victorious in the Northern Irish arena, teaming up with the DUP to crush their common enemies.

 

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Labour published its manifesto in Scotland with the party trailing the Alliance in the opinion polls. "There's three and a half weeks of hard fighting to go, but the momentum is with us now," Liberal defence secretary Russell Johnston claimed to The Guardian. Prospective Labour spokesman Willie McKelvey hoped the launch in early May would counter the Alliance's advance. "We're on your side" came the party line to Scottish voters. Its manifesto concentrated on traditional 'bread and butter' issues; for example, improving social services and reforming the police force. Other measures included scrapping prescription charges for all and extra financial support for students. Labour were keen to focus the Scottish electorate's attention on domestic issues. Upon McKelvey's election to the leadership, his campaign made arguments for socialism, attacking the UK Government's coal plan, market values and the retention of Right to Buy. Meanwhile, the Alliance touted the advantages of devolution. Pointing to a list of achievements in Westminster, the Liberals savaged the Independent Unionists and SNP on nationalism, arguing that they both needed one another in an "unholy pact". The SDP hit out at Labour on the economy. Neil Kinnock labelled the SNP as "Tartan Tories".



Once all the devolved parties had chosen their leaders, the race became more policy-centred and less tribal. Tory representative Malcolm Rifkind announced his backing for the Scottish Parliament and launched his policies, chiefly government investment in private-sector firms. Shorn of its most regressive wing, the Conservative Party began morphing into a rather technocratic vehicle for moderate adjustments in the name of higher productivity and economic growth. Independent Unionists battled to abolish the new Parliament, a message that resonated with fringe elements beyond the mainstream of views. The SNP hoped to persuade more voters of the case for independence. National leader Gordon Wilson succeeded, however, in making the SNP's approach to constitutional change more gradualist. He argued that vast North Sea oil revenues "should be ploughed back into the industrial fabric of Scotland". Compared to her rivals it was the Alliance, led by Ray Michie (Liberal) and Donald Dewar (SDP), who deployed numerous familiar faces (e.g. Robert Maclennan, Charles Kennedy and David Steel himself) to reach undecided voters.



"It does, I hope, end much argument and dispute," ventured Mr Dewar on hearing the outcome, held under the Single Transferable Vote method in a ground-breaking event. The Alliance had sailed out ahead of its competitors, ending more or less tied in the vote share with Labour, though without a majority (as to be expected with proportional representation). 23 Liberal MSPs had been elected to the SDP's 13. David Owen claimed that "the era of big centralised government is over". The Prime Minister hailed it as a vindication of the Alliance's policy of devolution - and proof that most voters rejected separatism. "We have made it work and in Scotland it's absolutely clear that the vast majority of people voted for parties that are opposed to the nationalist agenda of independence," he said. Mr Wilson congratulated Michie and Dewar on their success but promised that the SNP would be a creative and dynamic alternative. Rifkind talked up the Tory result. "The Conservative and Unionist Party is back. We are going to be the third force in Scottish politics." McKelvey warned the Alliance would be forced to negotiate in order to form a coalition in the Scottish Parliament. Mrs Michie obliged: "We are going to have to make compromises - that's called democracy".



The Alliance and Labour were jubilant about their parties' gains, after many commentators had poured scorn on the Labour campaign and forecast a poor result. Scotland's first national poll did, however, confirm a relative decline in the party's fortunes north of the border, where they had once been hegemonic. Asked about coalition plans, Mr McKelvey said: "We are all minorities now... Scotland has waited 300 years for this Parliament; I think the voters have a bit more patience for two or three more days. We are not going to be rushed." Michie wept as she told ecstatic supporters that today was a fateful one. The well-liked Liberal leader was cheered by party members in Edinburgh. Her two main aims had been self-government and the development of Gaelic - "one of the oldest languages in Europe, so rich in literature, music, poetry and song, which has so enhanced our heritage, our culture, our traditions and values". She therefore delighted in the creation of her long fought-for Scottish Parliament. Michie spoke about "her people" and "her islands", not in a feudal, paternalistic way, but because she felt honoured and privileged that they had voted Alliance and, in turn, she wanted to do her best for them.

 

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History was made on 12 June 1985 when newly-elected members of a Scottish Parliament were sworn in - for the first time in 300 years. MSPs were still taking their seats in the Chamber as the ceremony began. They greeted their colleagues and members from all parties in an atmosphere buzzing with anticipation. Each took the oath of allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II, with Labour member Dennis Canavan saying: "Can I make it clear that I believe in the sovereignty of the people of Scotland rather than a monarch." He and others like him made the affirmation under protest, stating that their vision was of a democratic socialist republic. On 1 July, power was transferred from Westminster to the new Parliament. David Steel arrived amid the glitz, glamour and TV cameras, chatting with the Queen and Prince Philip in the morning sun before speaking inside to dignitaries, Elizabeth II sat close by. "I have great pleasure and welcome you today to the official opening of the Scottish Parliament," he declared. "The ambition of this parliament is to bring decision-making and accountability closer to the people, and make a real difference in their daily lives. It has been a long and, at times, difficult journey... This is a happy and glorious day for the people of Scotland. Once again, we the elected representatives of the people are able to welcome Your Majesty, seated as you are among us, to greet you in the historic and constitutionally correct manner, with warmth and affection as Queen of Scots."



Discussions throughout the following weeks ended with Scottish Labour leader Willie McKelvey struggling to contain a revolt as his MSPs accepted a coalition with the Liberals and SDP. He hoped that dissident backbenchers would be assuaged by McKelvey's elevation to the post of Finance Minister - ensuring a prominent voice for the party while it ruled with the Alliance. Senior members complained that he'd sold out to Ray Michie and Donald Dewar, paying the price at the next election. Dennis Canavan said his party would have been better off rejecting a deal and perhaps forming a minority government on its own. He did reluctantly accept its decision to do a deal with the Alliance parties. Several highlighted the fact Labour had received the most votes in the country, giving it a mandate to form an administration. They predicted trouble ahead, particularly from backbenchers sceptical of devolution. In a sign of tensions at the top of the UK Government, one Cabinet minister ruled out giving any ground to Labour over the Plan for Coal, adamant there should not be one rule for England and another for Scotland. "If you want to keep the bulk of mines open, you have to find a new system of financing that, which we have done," he said.

The Partnership Scotland document detailed policies the Liberals, SDP and Labour agreed to pursue in the coming years. It represented both a massive gamble and a great opportunity. Gordon Wilson was secretly delighted at the agreement, believing that Mrs Michie, Mr Dewar and Mr McKelvey would be plagued by backbench insurrections. "Coalition is the best thing that could happen for us. We get to kill two birds with one stone," sources close to the SNP leader said. As Michie was elected First Minister of the new Scottish Parliament, achieving her lifelong political dream, it became clear that her term in office would not be easy. Dewar's own MSPs were happy with the deal and he made it clear that he still held on to the goal of consensus politics in the new parliament. "Cooperation is always possible where there are common aims and values."

 

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1985 Scottish Government:

 

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Victory at the ballot box in council areas right across England and Wales, advances in the regions and a leading position in Scotland's first modern Parliament brought David Steel's Liberals to the height of their power. The Prime Minister was happiest with successful devolution to his home country, whose people could exercise decision-making over important matters with greater ease. If 1983's landslide towards the Alliance had been a vote against Thatcher and Foot, now Liberal and SDP ministers enjoyed the command of British politics and society. In opinion surveys, the economy was felt to be thriving, having recovered in large part from the mess inherited. Thanks to state assistance and employee participation, manufacturing, financial services, publicly owned industries and exports soared. GDP grew by 5% - not far below the 6.5% achieved in 1973; or compare with the minus 2% recession of 1980! Individuals knew they were better-off, more able to go on holidays or shop around in the marketplace, start a family and pursue a lasting career. The public listed housing, crime and terrorism as worries, however. While a plurality of middle-ground voters flocked to the Alliance, outside the tent debate seemed to be polarising. Labour under Tony Benn and comrades such as Eric Heffer and Peter Shore explored a platform of socialism (the Alternative Economic Strategy) aimed squarely at the ruling capitalist class of business owners and banks, combined with a left-wing nationalism. The Unionist splinter gave conservatives a full-blooded hard-right option, which many took. Violent attacks on ethnic minorities rose as Enoch Powell took to stages spouting hateful rhetoric dressed up as reason and common sense.



The Alliance had exploited this fractured right wing opposition perfectly in non-metropolitan constituencies when the local polls took place. Labour skilfully defended their position, retaining most of the seats gained in 1984. The Tories improved upon their expected vote share (20%) by three points. Further, Michael Heseltine was more popular than his party. But first-past-the-post broke the Conservatives and the Unionists with them fighting it out as a relatively unpopular and mutinous right. What looked like terminal decline prompted analysts to ask: is this the strange death of Tory England? Angry that his leadership had been prohibited from getting off the runway so early, Mr Heseltine understood he needed to rock the boat instead. On 14 June, he took to the airwaves to demand the Single Transferable Vote for local elections. Nothing like those results could happen again. Allies on the party's left repeated the call, on television interviews and at branch meetings with the grass roots. Surprisingly few activists, MPs or Lords resisted the change of direction, with a desire for proportional representation stemming from loyalty to the Conservative Party and despair at their current predicament. Home affairs spokesman Francis Pym challenged the Alliance to uphold its values by acceding to reform. The PM was hesitant - Tory decline meant a Liberal surge. Radical members of his base warned against rowing back on democratisation. As head of the largest party Shirley Williams, under pressure from David Owen, forced Steel's hand. A bill would be drawn up to provide fairness for the next set of local government elections. "For decades, voters have been cheated," proclaimed Mr Steel. "Only this Alliance government will summon the courage to deliver electoral reform. Britain shall follow Europe with a system of proportional representation in which every vote counts." Finally, an historic Liberal dream was approaching reality with Conservative backing! There would be more change, not less.

 

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Tony Benn faced a showdown with Labour MPs amid growing fears in sections of the parliamentary party that his supporters were systematically trying to purge MPs who criticised the leadership. Mr Benn attended a stormy meeting in the House of Commons, at which several MPs ordered him to guarantee that he and his office were not behind such moves. Gerald Kaufman said the atmosphere in the party was so negative it raised questions about its ability to survive: "The mood within the party is unbelievably tense and threatens its very existence. Resolution of this situation is in his hands and Tony needs to act quickly." After a spring in which senior Labour figures had toured Britain in a bid to connect with working-class voters, the party became dogged by policy disagreements and claims of bullying. Several MPs whose views differed from those of the leadership lost binding motions of no-confidence in their own local parties and faced de-selection. A party spokesman insisted that the Benn's team was not in any way involved in encouraging this.



The Labour leader also confronted a torrent of abuse from back-benchers after suggesting that he would press ahead with Irish re-unification and departure from the EEC, without referenda, if the party entered government. The first signs of a serious internal revolt from members on the Labour right came after Benn said that he would rip up the Anglo-Irish treaty which had built a framework for devolution to the British-occupied North. Politicians who opposed a radical socialist programme - and barely recognised Benn's mandate as the elected leader - advertised their statesmanlike credentials. Labour's deputy leader, Neil Kinnock, chatted with Foreign Secretary David Owen at a charity event (although they personally detested each other). Denis Healey spoke to the BBC: "Tony is in danger of betraying and losing the support of millions of ordinary people whose support he needs if he is to ever to become Prime Minister." Kinnock told Mr Benn that he must change direction or face a challenge. MPs discussed plans for another centrist political party to be launched before 1987. Dozens of figures from inside and outside Westminster were secretly involved in the project.



Freed from the shadow of anti-democratic elitist MPs, 'our Tony' could engage directly with his adoring crowds and listen to people. He called on left-wing MPs and activists to keep campaigning as he unveiled plans to target 100 marginal seats by September. Mr Benn unveiled the campaign blitz - the largest Labour had ever undertaken outside of an election - at the last meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party before the Commons recess. Rallies attracted entire villages in a host of Alliance-held Scottish seats, in a concerted effort to win back traditional Labour supporters north of the border. Benn vowed to speak to "thousands of voters". He added: "Unlike the establishment parties, Labour will transform our economy through investment, insisting that the true wealth creators - that means all of you - benefit from it." He contended that the Alliance were responsible for handing the state over to moneyed interests: "Britain has had SDP governments for the past 30 years." A young supporter encapsulated the prevailing mood: "Tony Benn's a man of his word, his voting record speaks for itself and his priorities and policies will actually benefit the common worker."

 

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The SDP was set up in 1981 as a broad church made up of several political traditions: from big-state redistributionist Keynesians, to moderate free marketeers, to idealistic radicals. There was, though, considerable overlap. Shirley Williams (Leader of the SDP, Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State) fit the left-social democratic Keynesian mould, as did Bill Rodgers (Chancellor of the Exchequer). David Owen (Foreign Secretary) had been moving ever-further to the right, from a wholly left-leaning radical centrism towards a focus on national defence and a competitive private sector. Both he and Mrs Williams still promoted a socially progressive radicalism. Roy Jenkins and his faction of liberals sat in between. Debates around the shape of political economy in Britain, combined with a few differences on social issues, ensured that social democracy was flourishing after its near-death experience. The SDP became a bustling movement full of lively and healthy debate, particularly at the grass-roots level. Members (often quite centre-left on the economy and public services but centre-right on the trade unions, death penalty and private enterprise) began to really draw on their influence as the autumn conference season approached. By dictating party policy, which would then be up for negotiation with the Liberals, collectively activists could directly set the agenda for government. However, personal relationships at the upper echelons decided the final decisions on legislation.



With each year the makeup of the SDP had changed composition, bringing in new members and shifting old loyalties. Jenkins' early presidency of the Gang of Four saw moderate positioning (often in contrast with the other three) and Williams' leadership revealed new contours to the SDP's internal topology. Most importantly, there began to emerge a distinctive, progressive centre-left current that was democratic, green and internationalist in its aspirations. The old Labour right - rooted in local government and union bureaucracies - had campaigned against radical socialism since the 1940s. Political crises in the 1980s saw the Labour left divide between the hard left of Tony Benn and the soft left led by Neil Kinnock. Centrist social democrats still inside Labour resembled Mr Rodgers or Dr Owen more than Militant and the dominant Bennites. Like the soft left, Mrs Williams wanted to update socialism for a new technological and political age, to oppose Trotskyist factions and do what it took to win elections from the centre. This electoral plan, although based on genuinely-held beliefs and values, invited criticism from Mr Benn. He argued that a left-wing party would succeed by campaigning honestly on a radically democratic, socialist programme and answering the needs of the people. Working-class Brits were mainly divided between voting for Labour, SDP or Unionist.

As the SDP leadership remained committed to the radical policy agenda developed in the 1970s with Harold Wilson, they occupied progressive ground and upstaged Labour by having the power of being in government. Traditional socialism enthused a large base, despite waning support for it among parts of the electorate. The Owenites, advocating free markets and globalisation, emerged as a distinctive section of the party elite. Collaborating with ex-Tories in the party such as former Prime Minister Ted Heath (SDP President) and Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler (Overseas Development Minister), Owen led moves to the right. He attempted to formulate a collection of policy goals - economic efficiency through market allocation, plus social justice through redistribution - which he called 'the social market economy'. Mrs Williams sympathised with this combination, but was less keen on free-market fetishisation. Rodgers disregarded the Owenite fantasy until it was too late to put back in a box. The Foreign Secretary, or 'Dr Death' as he was affectionately nicknamed, wanted to define the SDP's ideological position - different from the Conservatives and Labour, and increasingly different from the Jenkinsites and Liberals. He claimed to have borrowed the 'social market' idea from the German SPD's 1959 Bad Godesberg Programme.



In September 1985, Owen outlined his views in the article 'Agenda for Competition with Compassion'. Taking a fundamentally idealistic social angle but siding with the likes of Margaret Thatcher on profit-seeking, he built upon ideas in a speech he gave in 1981 to diagnose Britain's problems. The source of economic and industrial decline had been poor productivity, caused by a failure to develop a commercially oriented social climate within firms, far too weak an emphasis on winning markets and low exports. Owen concentrated mostly on the public sector, where he tended cautiously towards de-nationalisation, though at the same time accepting that publicly owned industries could be used imaginatively. Monopolies in the public service sector were to be broken up; franchising was favoured for such services as telephones, post, gas, electricity, railways and water. Had the Owenites been left-wing in the first place? Their idol, a mercurial and highly intelligent man, saw the main obstacle to efficiency and competition, however, as organised labour. Owen proposed further action on industrial democracy (to ensure that workers fully understood the commercial realities facing their firms); greater democracy within trade unions; ending national pay settlements and wage bargaining structures; and adherence to the incomes policy of 1983 to control inflation, at least for now. There would also be an industrial strategy to help businesses with planning; and reform of the social security system (mainly through targeting instead of universal benefits) to reduce unemployment, poverty and deprivation. Social partnership thus took its place beside industrial partnership to create "the background of understanding and shared interests that is inherent in the social market".

 

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Social Democrats met for their 1985 conference in a thoroughly optimistic mood. Facing a rally of activists in the Torquay sun, leader Shirley Williams invited loyal followers to recall the new party's birth half a decade before. When, in 1979, Margaret Thatcher's right-wing Conservatives had stormed to power, defeated Labour MPs included Mrs Williams herself. Next came a fast movement of events. Roy Jenkins delivered his Dimbleby lecture, 'Home thoughts from abroad'; the Social Democratic Alliance stood candidates against the Labour left; Bill Rodgers warned the party had "a year, not much longer, in which to save itself"; the Wembley conference statement 'Peace, Jobs, Freedom' backed unilateral nuclear disarmament and anti-EEC policies; and David Owen, Rodgers and Williams threatened to leave: "There are some of us who will not accept a choice between socialism and Europe. We will choose them both". Back in 1980, the now-SDP leader had warned that a centre party would have "no roots, no principles, no philosophy and no values". Her mission was to grow a radical party, guided by a faith in social and economic progress for ordinary families. The Limehouse Declaration promised to build an "open, classless and more equal society". In unity with the Gang of Four, Liberal leader David Steel called for people to "Go back to your constituencies and prepare for government". 1983 saw that dream realised. While Labour embraced Bennite socialism and the Tories sank with the fleet in San Carlos Water, the Alliance prospered and laid out a fresh path for Britain. The Liberal/SDP coalition passed from strength to strength, winning devolved elections and enacting a wide range of reforms. From July to September 1985, they consistently topped opinion polls. PM Steel and Mr Jenkins flaunted the 1983 manifesto to point out its fruition. Crowds of members gathered on the English Riviera knowing the fortunes of liberalism and social democracy were, once again, on the march and apparently unstoppable.



"Our priority is jobs, jobs, jobs." These words came from Mrs Williams against the backdrop of rising living standards. She spoke for public service managers, hopeful young families, welfarist middle earners and green innovators. Growth in domestic production boosted earnings, reinforcing the Social Contract. Due to investment, bold policies and workforce participation, unemployment had fallen by one million since the 1983 general election, a huge achievement. The Government's target was to cut it to a million within the next two years. At any one time, 20-30% of adults were supportive of Tony Benn, his leadership and the values of Labour; an equal percentage range were visciously opposed. That left an estimated 40-60% who were passively tolerant or actively disenchanted with the old two-party system. What determined the range in each case was the scale of any current crisis, making the 'mixed middle' into the crucial element of Alliance support sustaining overall popularity. Steel, Williams, Rodgers, Owen, Jenkins and Heath all recognised this new political landscape and were determined to take full advantage. However, views about strategic direction varied. On 10 September, matters came to a head. With the Owenites proposing increasingly ambitious social reforms (together with Mrs Williams but opposed by the Heathites) and, in Mr Jenkins' words, "sub-Thatcherite" economic de-regulation, cracks emerged. A small Limehouse Group had been formed to keep the SDP on the left. Williams and Rodgers backed a motion affirming the party as one "of radical social and constitutional reform, deeply concerned with the well-being of the people, the evil of unemployment and the need for a caring society". After winning the vote by a fair margin, the SDP leader and deputy PM told delegates: "We have become, on the centre-left of politics, the main challenger to the Conservatives and defeated it... by taking over many of the traditional values of the Labour Party".



The Torquay debate was a setback for Owen and Heath, who watched their two sides (married but dissimilar - ex-Tory wets were especially moderate) drift apart. Numerous motions were moved at conference. Broadly speaking, Owenites including former Communist Sue Slipman accepted references to equality, compassion and boldness; yet in terms of positioning, felt that in order to supplant Labour the party leadership would need to break all umbilical ties with it. "We are not a mark II Labour Party," said a grass-roots Owenite to loud applause. "The values of social compassion and social justice are Social Democratic values and are our values." In her main address Mrs Williams conceded that dissent existed regarding a left-leaning strategy. "The Labour Party was sick thirty years ago and died five years ago." Members enjoyed asserting their democratic rights and debated vigorously. In the round, the 1985 Torquay conference was a great success. More than 2,400 delegates attended and the atmosphere, while optimistic, was less feverish than it had been at the time of the first rolling conference four years prior. The SDP was in good heart and it had reason to think that, with the Liberals, it might well become the largest party in the next parliament. Yes, there were disagreements, but because Williams reigned unchallenged she was able to unite most of the disparate groups behind her vision. Social Democrats welcomed the chance to further their independence from the older parties. In any case, many had never belonged to either. The phrase "traditional Labour values" sparked protest; at the same time, the SDP reasserted its objective of creating a more equal, more caring society. More than one leading figure described the conference as a "watershed". A journalist wrote in The Financial Times the day after: "The Social Democratic Party has found itself at Torquay... it has come together with a new self-confidence."

 

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SDP parliamentary camps in 1985 (MPs):

• 52 Williams/Rodgersite (progressive left)
• 103 Jenkinsite (liberal centre-left)
• 11 Owenite (radical centre)
• 11 Heathite (moderate centre-right)

 

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The Liberal Assembly was held a week later, kicking off a round of controversial motions carried by the party's famously non-conformist base. Deputy leader and Home Secretary Alan Beith told applauding delegates that South African apartheid was the direct descendant of the ideology of the Holocaust. He vowed to work with the Foreign Secretary and others to sustain pressure on the regime. The Assembly passed by large majorities a motion condemning apartheid and calling for embargoes, for termination of the no-visa agreement with South Africa and an EEC ban on South African Airways flights. An amendment moved by Mr Beith was added to the motion deploring the state of emergency and favouring the application of effective measures in the UN, Commonwealth and wider international community. Alan Watson, outgoing President of the Liberal Party, said: "The purpose of sanctions is to prevent Armageddon in South Africa". Members also called for the adoption of a formal "no first strike" nuclear pledge by all NATO countries, against David Steel's scepticism. He had already relented to pleas for the removal of US cruise missiles from Britain in 1983; more unilateralist steps would test the solidity of the Alliance with the SDP. It was only thanks to momentary public anger over the Reagan Administration's handling of the Falklands War that the UK Government felt obliged to cancel the deployments. Mr Steel warned that Liberal support for the abandonment of all British nuclear weapons would cost the Alliance as dearly as it cost Labour in the 1983 general election.



Mr Steel got his way on a compromise measure, backed by most Liberal MPs, calling for a freeze on the deployment of cruise missiles in Britain's Western European neighbours and for a system of joint control by Washington and the countries in which they were based. His position, the Prime Minister said, would align the Liberals with the leaders of the Democratic Party in the US and "perhaps with the younger generation in Moscow." The Liberal stance came in direct opposition to that of the Social Democrats, who'd favoured the inclusion of European cruise missiles in arms talks, and particularly to that of David Owen, who took a relatively hard line on national defence. Paddy Ashdown, a 42-year-old former Royal Marine commando from Yeovil in Somerset who entered the House of Commons in 1983, emerged as the champion of the 'missiles out' faction. He had won a standing ovation for contending that the cruise missile was not only "militarily useless and politically dangerous" but also "a symbol of United States domination" of NATO and a barrier to resumed disarmament talks. The success of those negotiations with the US and USSR, keeping Polaris as a bargaining chip, lent weight to his stance. Advocating increased spending on conventional defence, Mr Ashdown urged his party to demonstrate by adopting a motion that it was "serious about defence in a way that Labour is not and sincere about disarmament in way that Michael Heseltine cannot be."



Personal chemistry between Steel and the Gang of Four was vital to the strength of the Alliance. A constant feature of Mr Steel’s leadership was an ability to keep his eye on the big picture, to an extent that bemused and infuriated those who sought in him a greater interest in the detail of policy. Combined with considerable stamina, it lent the PM great popular appeal among the electorate. Throughout the 1980s, opinion polls showed that he was one of the UK’s most liked politicians. Steel is credited with laying the groundwork for the formation of the Scottish Parliament in 1985. He maintained keen interests, such as democracy and human rights in developing countries, racial justice in Africa, European union and (contentiously) the hunting of wild animals. Steel’s strategic contribution to UK politics lay in convincing others that partnership between liberals and social or Christian democrats could provide stable government capable of commanding majority support in the country and an alternative to the Tory hegemony of the 20th century. He argued that the way to power for a small party in a first-past-the-post electoral system was in cooperation with one of the major parties and that the logic of their espousal of a system of proportional representation was support for multi-party government of the kind found in other Western European nations.



Liberal delegates passed several additional motions with the Cabinet's endorsement, including requests for an anti-homelessness drive, firmer trade union protections and higher council housing and public works budgets. Until 1985, the Alliance's broad approach was clearly centrist, stressing the need to avoid extremism and confrontation politics and to promote partnership and national unity, but it retained from the long-running Liberal problem of defining the party not as what it was but as what it was not - not the right-wing Conservatives, and not the left-wing socialists. The period thereafter was one of growing co-operation at the grass roots of the Alliance and growing tension at its core. In most areas, campaigners found they could work together effectively and without serious dispute; several seats opted for the practice of joint selection of parliamentary candidates. Yet the Owenites (building activist support) were determined not to let the two parties drift together. For now, Shirley Williams and Bill Rodgers commanded the loyalty of SDP voters. With Roy Jenkins and Liberal allies, they advanced a shared policy. Friend and mentor Ludovic Kennedy once wrote perceptively that "although Steel does not possess the commanding Olympian presence of Asquith or Grimond, nor the ego of Lloyd George or Thorpe, his success and longevity are founded in his reasonableness and a cool control of his emotions". Steel’s durable telegenic appeal gave rise to the view that his political talent had seized the Liberal Party's destiny of revival.