l 10 2nd war
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LESSON 10 BRITAIN AND THE SECOND WORLD WAR
The Second World War was precipitated by the policies of the Western
powers that did their utmost to direct fascist aggression against the
Soviet Union. The Soviet Union on its part consistently urged Britain and
France to undertake collective measures to halt the advance of fascism and
defeat its aggressive aims. The Chamberlain government however, exertedevery effort to prevent this, and the outcome was the outbreak of World War
II. Britain hoped to kill two birds with one stone that Germany and Japan
involved in the war against Soviet Russia would be seriously weakened,
the problem of Bolshevism so much hated by the ruling oligarchy would be
solved and Britain would maintain her superiority in world affairs. However,
these hopes crashed in September 1939 when war between the two imperialist
groups headed by Germany and Britain started. Despite the seriousness of
the situation the war was carried on by Chamberlain with great reluctance.
The lack of any military activity until the spring of 1940 won this period
the title of 'the phoney war'. The military activity of Britain was confined
to limited air raids or naval skirmishes. This period ended in April 1940
when Hitler invaded Denmark and Norway and drove out a small Anglo-
French force. The dreams of the men of Munich were now smashed: war
was on Britain's threshold. Such a development of events created an uproar of
protest both in the country and in Parliament. The working class of Britainfully supported the slogan of the British Communist party 'Men of Munich, go!'
In Parliament Lloyd George said that Chamberlain's best contribution to the
war effort was to resign as prime minister. After a stormy debate the House of
Commons forced Chamberlain to resign and Winston Churchill became Prime
Minister of a coalition government which included Conservatives,
representatives of the Labour party and Liberals. This occurred on May 10,
1940, the day on which Hitler opened his offensive on the western front. Threedays after the attack in the west, Churchill warned Parliament, 'I have nothing
to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the
most grievous kind. We have before us many long months of struggle and
suffering'. For Britain World War II was now assuming an anti-fascist
character when in the summer of 1940 an immediate danger of fascist
invasion became imminent.
The German Blitzkrieg went ahead with overwhelming mechanized force and
bewildering speed. Germany overwhelmed the neutral countries of Belgium,
Holland and Luxembourg without warning. The Anglo-French forces were cut
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in two, when the main German attack broke through near Sedan. By May 20
the fascist armored forces reached the sea. Holland and Belgium surrendered.
The trapped British expeditionary forces hurriedly evacuated from Dunkirk
leaving much equipment and ammunitions to the enemy. The simple people of
Britain displayed outstanding patriotism and courage in helping to save the
British force from complete defeat by hurriedly evacuating the soldiers onevery kind of craft that was available. More than three hundred thousand
Anglo-French soldiers were thus transported in a motley array of vessels.
Nevertheless Dunkirk became a synonym of disastrous defeat for Britain.
Fascist Germany resumed its advance on June 5 which ended with the
capitulation of France. In 1940 Italy joined the war against Britain. At this
stage of the war Hitler began to make preparations to invade Britain. He
attached great importance to victory in the air. Victory in the air was necessary
to the fascists before they could attempt invasion. From August 1940 came the
permanent bombing of British cities and military installations, popularly
called the 'Blitz'. These attacks caused serious damage and took many lives.
The 'Blitz' brought its own terrors, and put a heavy strain on civilians.
Nevertheless the British people did not flinch or hesitate in their
determination to defeat fascism. In the spring of 1941 the raids ended as
Hitler moved his forces east to prepare for the invasion of the Soviet Union. On
June 22, 1941 fascist Germany invaded the Soviet Union. The participation ofthe Soviet Union changed the whole content of the war.With the German
onslaught on the Soviet Union, Hitler's invasion plan of Britain 'Operation
Sea-Lion' was abandoned. In July 1941 the Anglo-Soviet treaty of united
action against Germany was signed in Moscow. The British people
demanded urgent action to be taken as regards launching an offensive in the
west against fascist Germany. Especially pressing were these demands when
the Red Army routed the German forces near Moscow in December 1941.When the Japanese fleet in December 1941 attacked the American naval base
of Pearl Harbour the USA declared war both on Japan and Germany. This
added a new dimension to the war: the antifascist coalition of the Soviet
Union, the USA and Britain was thus created. It was a great victory of
Soviet foreign policy. A powerful united front against fascism and
militarism was formed. The Anglo-Soviet treaty signed in London in May
1942 obliged Britain together with the USA to open a second front.
However, these promises were constantly delayed. For the next two years
discussions were on about a second front in Europe, and this vital
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prerequisite for allied victory was postponed by Churchill in favour of new
military actions in North Africa, and then in Italy. Britain's imperialist
interests in Africa came before a speedy victory in Europe, until it became
clear that the Soviet army could defeat Hitler's Wehrmacht by itself.
During the autumn and winter of 19423 the whole tide of war turned. The
Stalingrad battle broke the backbone of the Hitler war machine: the Sovietarmy launched a counter-offensive in November 1942 and eventually
destroyed the 300 thousand German army besieging it, taking prisoner
Field Marshal von Paulus (January February 1943). The summer and
autumn offensive of the Soviet army in 1943 consolidated the basic gains in
the war against fascism and created an entirely new situation. The Soviet
victory gave a powerful fillip to the resistance movement all throughout
occupied Europe.
Meanwhile the British Eighth Army under general Montgomery together with
the American forces defeated Rommel and his army at El Alamein (1942) in
North Africa. Further Churchill Roosevelt meetings took place in
Casablanca (January 1943) and Washington (May 1943) where it was finally
decided to open the second front only in May 1944. Finally, at Teheran,
Churchill and Roosevelt met Stalin to agree on a united strategy for this
decisive stage of the war. The Normandy landings in France took place on
June 6, 1944 (D-day) a month after the agreed date, and the end of the warwas no longer in doubt. The best German forces had been made harmless by
the Soviet army long before thai. Paris was soon liberated by the French
Resistance. Late in September 1944 the Anglo-American army reached the
western border of Germany. However, even at this final stage of the war the
Soviet Union once again proved its readiness to help the allies when they
suffered a serious setback. In December 1944 the German army launched a
surprise attack in the Ardennes (in south-east Belgium) and found a weak spotin the American lines. The German tanks went through and the allies were on
the brink of a major disaster. On January 6, 1945 Churchill appealed to the So-
viet government to launch an offensive in Poland to divert the German
forces from the west. The Soviet High Command was preparing for an
offensive to be carried out some time later. However, in this situation the
Soviet army intensified its preparations and launched a massive counter-
offensive on January 12. This saved the Anglo-American army, for the
German forces were hurriedly directed to the east and the allied line was
restored. Fascist Germany was now on the brink of a complete defeat. Under
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such circumstances it was necessary to hold a summit meeting to solve the
urgent problems of the final phase of the war and especially postwar issues.
Such a summit meeting between the Soviet Union, the USA and Britain took
place at Yalta in February 1945. The Conference demonstrated the sense of
unity between the allies and destroyed all fascist hopes that a united front
would not hold. The Yalta Conference elaborated an extensive programme ofliquidation of German militarism and nazism. It was a genuine democratic
programme which answered the interests of the peoples of the world. However,
postwar developments demonstrated the reluctance of the Western powers to
carry out this programme.
The fascists surrendered unconditionally in May 1945.
The military theatre became concentrated in the Far East. True to its
commitments the Soviet Union entered the war against Japan. Though the
Americans dropped their atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August
6 and 9, killing almost 250 thousand people, Japan was far from intending to
surrender. However, the mass offensive undertaken by the Soviet army in
Manchuria against the best Japanese forces the Kwantung army and its
overwhelming defeat led to the final capitulation of Japan. On September 2,
1945 World War II the greatest war in history was over. Britain had
survived but in the course of the long and exhausting conflict, much in the
world had changed, and new problems and new perils stood ahead.This period saw a tremendous upsurge of political interest in factories and
offices as well as in the armed forces.
In spite of the position of the official Labour party leadership, many
campaigns during the war constantly united Labour and Communist party
members as the centre of a wide popular movement calling for a second front
in Europe, the struggle to get maximum production for the war effort. In all
these campaigns the unity of the left was strengthened and the leadership of theCommunist party was more and more widely appreciated. Its membership
grew more than three times as compared with the pre-war days. The part
played by the Daily Worker in leading class struggles and in winning wider
respect for the Communist party was vital. The government scared by the
popularity of the paper banned it in January 1941. However, this aroused
widescale protest among the working class. The campaign grew so strong in
1942 that the Labour party conference in July passed a resolution demanding
an end to the ban which was issued by the Home Secretary Herbert
Morrison, a violently anti-Communist Labour party leader. Under the pressure
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of the British working class the Daily Workerwas allowed to come out again
from August 26, 1942. This was an important illustration of the growth of
left-wing feelings in the country. However, the right wing leadership of the
Labour party undertook every effort to check the spread of socialist ideas.
Though nationalization was included into the programme of the party in 1918
the right wing leaders only paid lip service to this clause. Socialism wasinterpreted in general terms without any concrete measures aimed at changing
capitalism. Nevertheless pro-socialist views were so strong that in 1945 the
Labour party produced an election programme 'Let Us Face the Future', which
was comparatively progressive, and which was to win the general election.
After victory over Germany, Churchill urged to preserve the government coali-
tion until the victory over Japan. However, the masses discontent with the
reactionary policies of the Conservatives rejected this plan. The broad masses
wanted no return to the past associated with the Tories. Despite Churchill's
personal popularity which the Tories tried to exploit the masses rejected the
party of 'big business'. The elections of July 5, 1945 ended in a landslide
victory for the Labour party and Clement Attlee became Prime Minister of the
new Labour government. Two Communists William Gallacher and Phil
Piratin were elected to parliament which was a major event in the history
of the British working class movement. A favourable background was
created for the adoption of progressive socio-economic legislat ion, whichsubstantially improved labour conditions and social security.
POSTWAR BRITAIN
Britain emerged from the war in a weakened position both economically and
politically. Her losses in human lives were comparatively small, about three
hundred thousand, which was four times less than in 191418. Material
damage and losses were much more substantial, about 25 billion pounds.
British exports fell drastically too, while high imports continued due to thestructure of the economy and its dependence on raw materials and foodstuffs.
Britain had to sell about half of her foreign capital investments to pay for the
war, and in addition to borrow money widely. In that situation Britain tried to
maintain its social and economic position by accepting the role of junior
partner of the USA. This was the background to the policy described as a
'special relationship' with the United States in the notorious speech of
Winston Churchill at Fulton, Missouri, on March 5, 1946. This speech was
popularly regarded in the west as the start of the cold war against the Soviet
Union. It was a policy that was to impose heavy burdens on the British
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people. British industry had been neglected in favour of capital investment
abroad; it was technically backward, especially in the basic industries, and its
exports did not cover in earnings the imports. The difference or deficit had
been met by the huge flow of superprofits derived from the colonies. Now
these profits were cut by half due to the sales of capital during the war. A
further strain was the cost of military bases maintained by Britain abroad.Before the war the peoples of the colonies paid for these costs. As the old
colonial system collapsed more had to be paid by Britain itself. Such was the
background of Britain's slow economic advance after the war, the slowest in
the capitalist world. However, advance did take place, in spite of financial
crises, the devaluation of the pound in 1949. and the growing waste of men and
materials in rearmament. This economic advance was characteristic of a normal
postwar boom. Throughout this period of moderate economic expansion there
was an increasing trend towards monopoly development in the main branches
of industry. Such were the problems which the Labour government (1945
51) faced. If the British Labour government of Attlee Morrison Bevin
had really been socialist, as it claimed to be, it would have solved the problems
of the country by taking measures against the domination of monopoly capital
at home and stopping the export of capital abroad. However, the right-wing
Labour leaders borrowed widely from the USA thus becoming more and
more dependent on the USA. Britain became an automatic supporter ofwhatever the American government chose to do. In the UN organization, in
the Central Control Commission in Germany, in West Berlin, on all issues
Britain danced to the tune of the USA. The Potsdam agreement was ignored by
the Western powers, the cold war against the Soviet Union and the countries
of peoples' democracies was stepped up. The NATO bloc was formed in
March 1949. Britain's military role as the junior partner of the United States
was that of an 'unsinkable aircraft carrier'. The occupation of Britain byAmerican bombers began in July 1948, American bases were extended all
over the country.
The British Labour government paying lip service to the principles of socia-
lism carried out nationalization of derelict industries, such as mining, energy,
the railways, means of communication. The Bank of England was
nationalized too. However, this was typical capitalist nationalization. Lavish
compensation was given to the ex-owners. The workers were completely
deprived of any control of the nationalized sector. The Labour government
claimed that it had made important social advances with security
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guaranteed to the workers in nationalized industries, and the introduction
of a system of social security that was hailed to be the best in the world. But
the hopes of the workers were soon disappointed. Social insurance, with the
new free health service, was paid for by contribution from the worker (35
per cent), the employer (33 per cent), and the state (32 per cent). However,
the share of the state was passed on to the public, that is mainly to theworkers, in the form of increased indirect taxation. It is necessary to
emphasize that the social benefits granted by Attlee's government were largely
nullified by a steady increase in the burden of indirect taxation. The
construction of state hospitals was carried out at a low pace, municipal
housing was limited, the number of pensioners was restricted and the
pensions were quite inadequate to make a living. Labour leaders had claimed
that a social revolution had been carried through with their establishment of
a 'welfare state'. In fact this was a complete fraud. The improved social
services had been paid for by the workers themselves through increased
taxation. Moreover, when more money was needed for rearmament the
government cut allocations for social needs. Social injustice continued to
prevail in the country. The Oxford Institute of Statistics showed that in the
1950s 60 per cent of the adult population owned less than 100 pounds each,
totalling only about 4 per cent of the nation's capital, but 63 per cent of the
total capital was owned by a mere 3 per cent of the adult population. TheLabour government having implemented a programme of limited reforms
began to carry out a typical policy of wage-freeze, demanding from the workers
an increase of production without any wage increase. Such a policy in the face
of a constant growth of prices on food and consumer goods meant an actual
deterioration of the living standards of the British people. This was coupled
with tax increases and social security cuts. It was quite logical that discontent
with the policies of the Labour government became widespread. The riftbetween the popular masses and the Labour government was quite vividly
expressed in the results of the general election in 1950 when the Labour
party won a marginal victory and remained in office till 1951. In foreign
policy the Attlee government was especially unpopular. The Labour
government did its utmost to delay independence to India. However, under the
pressure of the national liberation movement it was forced to grant
independence to India in 1947, then to Burma and Ceylon in 1948. Political
independence was granted to India but the country was divided into two
states, the Hindu state of India and the Moslem state of Pakistan, in
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accordance with the classical imperialist strategy of 'Divide and rule'. Other
colonial peoples were held down by force as long as possible. In 1948 the
Attlee government unleashed a typical colonial war against the people of
Malaya. Neo-colonialism too was widely pursued by Britain in her policies
against the newly-independent states. As a result of such unpopular policies
the British working class turned away from the Labour government, and theConservatives exploited the situation to their advantage and won the elections
in 1951 on the wave of mass Labour discontent. The government of 'big
business' held power till 1964. In this period the Communist Party of Great
Britain played an important role in uniting the progressive forces in the
country and stepping up the struggle of the working class for its rights. In
this respect the new draft programme of the British Communist party
'Britain's Boad to Socialism' published in 1951 contributed to the whole
labour movement. This programme reaffirmed that the only solution to
the problems of the British people was socialism. The winning of this
aim had to be considered in the light of the new world situation, with one-
third of the world in the socialist camp, with the breakdown of the old
imperialist system, and a new balance of forces. The new Conservative cabinet
of Churchill Eden (19515) facing serious economic and financial
problems caused by growing military expenditures tried to solve them at the
expense of the British people by slashing social security programmes andcurbing imports. Such a policy was a continuation of the policy of the right-
wing Labour leaders. The British working class staunchly opposed such
moves. The national strikes of the engineering workers and of the dockers
in 19534 clearly expressed the resolution of the workers to defend their
cause. Tension grew within the Conservative government and Churchill was
forced to resign in 1955. He was succeeded by Eden, a 'progressive
Conservative'. The temporary improvement of the economic situation coupledwith a modest pay rise contributed to the victory of the Conservative party in
the 1955 elections. However, soon the election promises were broken and
forgotten. The growth of labour opposition expressed in the number of strikes
forced the government to cancel its direct attempts to ban strikes. This was an
important development in the conflict between labour and capital. The crisis
of the colonial system hit Britain especially hard. Under the pressure of the
national liberation movement British colonialism was forced to retreat. In
1954 British forces withdrew from the Suez Canal zone. However, when
President Nasser of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in 1956 the combined
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Anglo-Franco-Israeli intervention of Egypt took place. British imperialism
once again exposed its aggressive nature.
There was world-wide condemnation of this act. Moreover, the Soviet Union
issued a stern warning. Under such circumstances Eden resigned in
January 1957 to be followed by Harold Macmillan. The unpopular actions of
the Conservatives eventually brought them to defeat which occurred inOctober 1964 when the Labour party regained office and Harold Wilson
became prime minister. The Suez disaster proved that the days of colonialism
were over.
Progress Test Questions and Assignments
Analyse the initial stage of World War II observing the policy of the
British government in 'the phoney war'.
Narrate the main developments of the war against fascist Germany, paying
special attention to the decisive role of the Soviet Union in defeating
fascism.
What caused the defeat of the Conservatives in 1945?
Observe the main policies of the Labour government (194551).
Give an argumentative criticism of the so-called 'welfare state' and of the
reforms implemented by the Labour party leadership.
CONTEMPORARY BRITAINIn 1950 the United Kingdom's gross national product (GNP) was the second
largest in the capitalist world after the USA, and in terms of GNP per head it
ranked fifth. In the 1980s Britain stands only fifth in terms of total GNP and
twentieth in terms of GNP per head. Britain's share of visible world trade
also declined in 1950 it accounted for 11 per cent of world trade, but by
the 1980s it went down to 56 per cent. Especially acute was the fact that
Britain continued to lag behind the other capitalist rivals both in the rate ofeconomic development and modernization. The country experienced a
chronic deficit in the balance of payments which meant that it could not
compete efficiently on the world markets.
After World War II there was an emergence of new industries and the
renewal and improvement of the country's infrastructure. However, these
developments were not of such a vast character as they occurred in other
capitalist countries such as Japan, the USA, West Germany or France. At the
same time in spite of short periods of growth the rate of economic growth
was low in comparison with the rates in other industrialized capitalist
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countries, never exceeding 2-3 per cent annually up to the 1970s, but much
lower in subsequent years. Moreover, there were years of minus growth.
Stagflation was the term which could be applied when assessing the condition
of the British economy, i. e. stagnation coupled with inflation. True, the latter
was reduced in the 1980s, but this was carried out at the expense of the
working class and mass unemployment became an immediate consequence.In short, Britain came to be known as 'the sick man of Europe'. The
democratic elements in the trade union and labour movement were aware
of the fact that the immediate problems of the state were caused by the
imperialist ambitions of the British governments which led to costly military
expenditures. Moreover, the continuing export of capital abroad by the
monopolies in search of super-profits contributed to the deterioration of the
economic position of the state, as well as the inconsistent policies of the British
governments concerning nationalization. However, the politicians and
ideologists of the British Establishment disregarding existing reality alleged
that the problems of the country were caused by the high living standards of
the British people and by the excessive demands of the working class. This
claim was completely false. Hence, on such an assumption the monopoly
class and the political elite advocated a policy of wage-freeze which on a
background of soaring prices meant a steady deterioration of the living
standards of the British people. This in its turn led to a growth of labourmilitancy associated with ensuing strikes. The effect of growing militancy
within the trade unions was shown in actions like the national engineering
strike of 1957 and the strike of London busmen in 1958. 1958 was a year
which brought a record number of stoppages of work (2,859) due to
industrial disputes, involving loss of 8,412,000 working days. Union
leaders tried to stop workers from striking, but strikes went on. In these
conditions when right-wing trade union leaders advocated a policy of classcollaboration, the role of shop stewards became more important. The shift to
the left was reflected also in the struggle within the Labour party. In the
1950s the right wing, headed by Hugh Gaitskell, the leader of the Labour
party since the resignation of Attlee in 1955, launched an offensive to delete
Clause 4 from the party constitution. This clause adopted in 1918 proclaimed
the socialist aim of 'common ownership of the means of production,
distribution and exchange'. True, the right wing never regarded this clause
seriously. However, it still remained an obstacle on the path of open
submission to the demands of the employers. The right-wing leaders alleged
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that the defeat of the Labour party in the elections of 1951 and 1955 was
caused by the demands for further nationalization. However, in reality the
electorate turned away from Labour due to its inconsistent policy concerning
nationalization. Despite its frenzied efforts the right-wing leadership was
defeated over this issue at the Labour party conference in 1960. Clause 4
remained in the party consitution. The delegates of the conferenceoverwhelmingly supported Frank Cousins and his formula: 'You may have
nationalization without socialism, but you cannot have socialism without
nationalization'. Despite this severe setback for the right wing it continued to
advocate and implement reactionary anti-socialist views within the Labour
party.
The Suez disaster of 1956 led to a wider interest taken by the people in
problems of foreign policy.
The British people rejected the policy of subservience to American imperia-
lism, of making the country an 'unsinkable aircraft carrier'. In 1958 the
Macmillan cabinet signed an agreement with the USA on the deployment of
American missiles in Britain. It aroused a storm of protest all throughout the
country. The Communist party was in the forefront of this campaign
organizing mass rallies and demonstrations against nuclear weapons and bases.
In this atmosphere of mass opposition the prominent scientist Bertrand
Russell together with a group of progressives formed a new anti-warorganization, 'Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament' (CND) which demanded
unilateral nuclear disarmament. In April 1958 the first peace march was
organized to Aldermaston the centre of British nuclear research. Since
then the Aldermaston marches have become an important event in the peace
campaign in the United Kingdom. Under the pressure of broad sections of
the British public the Conservative government accepted the proposals of the
USSR on banning nuclear tests in 1963. However, the Conservativegovernment faithfully supported US policies and in particular it gave full
backing to the formation of multilateral nuclear forces initiated by the US
government which gave the West German militarists a finger on the nuclear
trigger. Military expenditures were enhanced by the Nassau agreement (the
Bahamas) signed between Britain and the USA. The programme of
supplying Britain with American Polaris missiles meant an end to Britain's
independent nuclear forces. Meanwhile, the British industrialists found it
profitable to join the Common Market (the European Economic Community,
EEC) hoping to gain access to the rich European market. Voicing these hopes
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the Conservative government started negotiations to join the EEC. Strong
inside opposition was coupled with France's refusal to accept British terms.
Macmillan was forced to interrupt the negotiations on entry. This was a
personal setback for the prime minister who resigned in 1963. Macmillan
was succeeded by Alec Douglas-Home, formerly foreign secretary, but better
known as Neville Chamberlain's parliamentary private secretary and a leadingsupporter of his notorious Munich policy. The Conservative government had
completely discredited itself by its home and foreign policy and the general
election of 1964 ended thirteen years of Tory rule.
Shortly before the elections there was a change of leadership in the Labour
party: Gaitskell died suddenly in 1963 and a more popular-looking leader
was found. He was Harold Wilson, a former professor of economics at Oxford.
He criticized the incompetence of the Conservative party, excessive military
expenditures, stagnation, etc. Though he was considered to be a
representative of the centre of the party he soon showed that in twelve years
he had fully absorbed the outlook of the right wing.
In spite of Wilson's leadership the working class and other progressive people
rallied round the Labour party in 1964, and even more so in 1966, giving it a
comfortable majority in parliament.
When the Labour party came to power in 1964 it faced a very serious
situation: the majority in the House of Commons was marginal. Laboursupporters were asked to give the government a chance, 'not to rock the boat',
to maintain unity to keep the Tories out. These motives undoubtedly had an
effect on left-wing criticism. Harold Wilson began carefully with reforms
appealing to large numbers of voters: increases in old age pensions, increased
government help for municipal housing, restoration of some measures of rent
control, and cautious support for a more general advance towards a
comprehensive secondary school system. He was forgiven a lot because ofhis tiny majority in parliament. On coming to power Wilson faced a balance
of payments crisis (the deficit amounted to 800 million pounds). Urgent
measures were to be taken. These steps were characteristic of orthodox Tory-
style economy cuts and a wage-freeze policy. The government was bent on
greater state involvement in the affairs of the economy to achieve greater
nationalization, modernization of industry and redistribution of national
resources. Wilson believed that close cooperation between the government, the
monopolies and the trade union movement would contribute to the solution of
the ills of British society. In 1965 parliament adopted the five-year
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national plan. There were some positive elements in the plan concerning
economic recovery but in general the plan was a failure for it was bent not on
continued nationalization but on encouraging monopoly development. Under
the pressure of the labour movement Wilson's government contributed to
raising the school-leaving age to 16, it extended comprehensive education,
renationalized the steel industry and lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. Inforeign policy Wilson maintained continuity of Tory principles. However,
in the first years of Labour government there was a turn for the better in
Anglo-Soviet relations, though in the late 1960s these relations deteriorated
because of British involvement in an anti-Soviet campaign. The prestige of
the Labour government was still further lowered by its unpopular policy in
Northern Ireland where the Catholic minority started a peaceful campaign for
equal economic, political and social rights. The Northern Ireland Civil Rights
Association formed in 1967 organized mass peaceful rallies and demonstrations
demanding equal civil rights with the protestants. However, this peaceful
movement was met by brutal force by the protestant extremists. The Labour
government under the pretext of restoring law and order sent troops to
Northern Ireland. In reality the British army carried out punitive operations
against the victims of protestant outrages. The British government dealt
severely with the participants of the civil rights movement because it was a
challenge to the system which had long served the interests of Britishcolonialism. Mass arrests took place, concentration camps were set up where
the British authorities carried out interrogations using torture and other
illegal methods of brutal force. The inability of the Labour government to
solve the Ulster issue on democratic lines caused wide-scale discontent both in
Northern Ireland and Britain itself.
However, especially unpopular was Wilson's attempt to solve the economic
and financial problems of the country at the expense of the British people. Thiswas the gist of the 'prices and incomes policy'. The government stipulated that
the annual growth of wages should not exceed 3.5 per cent which was much
lower than the actual growth of prices. In other words it was a typical wage
freeze policy which led to wide-scale industrial unrest. Frank Cousins
resigned from the cabinet in protest against the Wilson line. Labour unrest
grew: if in 1967 734 thousand workers went on strike, in 1968 the figure
grew to 2,258 thousand. In 1968 the centenary congress of the trade unions
movement passed a resolution overwhelmingly deploring government
intervention in collective bargaining and demanded the repeal of the Prices
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and Incomes Act. Even more important, for the first time in a hundred
years there appeared a significant left-wing group in the leadership of the
TUG.
In January 1969 the government produced a White Paper called In Place of
Strife which proposed new legislation under which workers taking part in
unauthorized strikes could be fined. It gave the government powers to enforcea 'cooling-off period, delaying strikes for 28 days. The latter proposal was
based on similar laws in the USA. The plan to fine workers was regarded as a
most hostile anti-trade union measure. The whole trade union movement united
to oppose these proposals. The British communists again were in the front
ranks of this struggle. Protest strikes in February and May 1969 involved
hundreds of thousands of workers, particularly in London and Liverpool. In
April a National Convention of the left was organized by the Communist
party together with various left-wing Labour groups. An extraordinary
conference of the TUG, the first called in over 40 years, was held in June. In
face of determined opposition Wilson climbed down and withdrew his plans
for a new law. The mass media spoke of his humiliation. The negative effects
of Wilson's policies were clearly reflected in the general election of June
18,1970. Only 69 per cent of the electorate participated, the lowest percentage
since World War II, and within this lower poll the percentage of Labour
votes dropped to 43. This meant that over two million Labour voters hadabstained in protest against right-wing policies. On this background the
Conservatives won the election and Edward Heath formed the new Tory
government. The 1970s saw a rapid deepening of the economic and political
crisis of Britain. The lack of modernization in the period of scientific and
technological progress due to the outflow of capital, huge military
expenditures had a most negative effect on the performance of British
industry. Being a trading nation it failed to compete successfully on the worldmarkets because the economies of her main capitalist rivals had
experienced wide-scale modernization, especially after World War II and
their goods were comparatively cheaper. This had an adverse effect on the
country's balance of payments which is a ratio between the earnings of a
country through exports and the expenditures due to imports. With a deficit
in the balance of payments a country is forced to make loans. Hence financial
difficulties become imminent and the national currency is devalued.
Such a situation occurred in Great Britain in the given period: the
devaluation of the pound became a grim reality for British industry,
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finances and for the nation as a whole. Especially hard hit were the working
people whose inadequate earnings did not keep pace with soaring prices.
1973 was an important landmark in British history for on January 1, 1973 Bri-
tain was admitted to the European Economic Community together with
Ireland and Denmark. When it was formed in 1958 the United Kingdom
remained outside, still giving prevalence to sustaining links with theCommonwealth. With the former colonies gaining greater independence
economically the big monopolies decided to gain access to the rich European
market. However, inter-imperialist rivalries and strong opposition at home
held up these moves of the British governments. Britain's membership meant
serious changes for the country and especially for the people. Prices on
foodstuffs and consumer goods went up which meant new hardships for the
working people. Trading patterns changed too: Western Europe became the
dominant focus while Commonwealth links weakened.
Northern Ireland remained a burning issue. Despite the presence of the British
army which turned a blind eye to the violence and crimes of the
protestant ultras the province was on the brink of an open civil war. On
Sunday, January 30, 1972 British paratroopers fired on a peaceful civil
rights demonstration of Irish catholics in Londonderry, killing sixteen
people. This was bloody Sunday which will always be remebered as one of
the tragic days in the history of the nation. The Tory government furtheredits offensive against the civil rights movement by suspending the local
parliament and imposing direct rule from London in 1973. However, there
was no end to the crisis because official London refused to grant the
democratic reforms which could solve the crisis.
In foreign policy the Heath government supported the traditional Conservative
line; full support of American imperialism, NATO and of other
reactionary blocs such as CENTO (the Central Treaty Organization) andSEATO (the South-East Asia Treaty Organization), neo-colonialism in every
possible way, hostility to the world socialist community headed by the Soviet
Union, support of reactionary regimes such as the white minority regime of
Ian Smith in Bhodesia and the southern bulwark of imperialism in Africa
the racist regime in the South African Republic. Nevertheless, pressed by new
realities Heath had to accept the new balance of forces and Britain signed the
Four-Power treaty on Berlin in 1972 and finally recognized the GDR in 1973.
Meanwhile the crisis sharpened still further in Britain itself with inflation
rising from 10 per cent to about 20 per cent a year, the negative trade
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balance getting still worse, especially after entry into the Common Market,
and unemployment rising to around a million. Heath decided to show his firm
hand by a dramatic confrontation with the miners at the end of 1973, forcing
them to strike for higher wages and then, as coal stocks began to run out,
ordering all industries to limit work to three days a week. Heath called a
general election for February 1974 and expected a great victory. In fact theworking class totally rejected the Conservatives and brought them down to a
humiliating defeat: the Tories lost over a million votes. The Labour party
won. However, the Liberal party too made a startling success. The increase of
votes for the Liberals as well as for the Scotch and Welsh National parties
showed that the electorate was disappointed with the inconsistency of the
right-wing Labour leadership. Heath's defeat led to his resignation as leader
of the Conservative party in 1975. Margaret Thatcher, a representative of
the right wing, became leader of the party of 'big business'. It was a break with
established traditions when only men were considered to be suited for such
activities.
Having won a small majority the Labour government held another election in
October 1974 winning a workable majority. The new Labour government of
Wilson Callaghan (Wilson retired for personal reasons in 1976) learned the
necessary lessons of its previous defeat. Therefore it was more cautious
especially in regard of its policies toward the labour movement. Somepositive measures were taken: the notorious Industrial Relations Act was
repealed, the miners received a wage increase, the full working week was
restored, municipal housing rents were frozen. In foreign policy a positive
move was undertaken when Wilson paid a visit to Moscow in February 1975,
which marked a new stage of improved Anglo-Soviet relations.
However, the main problem of his government was still the economic and
financial crisis and here Wilson faithful to his right-wing convictions hadnothing new to offer. But he was able to disguise the old policies by proposing
a 'voluntary' wage-freeze policy called the Social Contract. It was based on
the bourgeois view that high wages were the main cause of inflation and
financial troubles. The acceptance of this policy by the TUG and Labour
party conferences in 1975 under the influence of right-wing ideas was a
major setback for the working class. It showed the continuing strength of
reformist illusions and the weakness in theory which has long been a feature
of the British working-class movement. This was the background to the 34th
Congress of the British Communist party held in November 1975. Gordon
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MacLen-nan was elected the new general secretary. The forum of British
communists emphasized the necessity to win left unity, to force the Labour
government to adopt left policies, to attack the power of the monopolies.
Under this influence the working class stepped up its struggle against the
social contract and opposed any intervention of the government in collective
bargaining. In 1976 the TUG demanded an end to this anti-working-classpractice. However, Callaghan, a typical right-winger, opposed these demands
which led to a fall of Labour support. The by-elections in 1977 reduced
Labour majority in parliament and it was forced to act in alliance with the
Liberals, a party of the middle class. This led to new concessions made by the
Labour government in favour of the monopoly class. Hence, the downfall of
the Labour party was imminent. The May elections of 1979 brought the
Conservatives to power and Margaret Thatcher became the first woman
prime minister in the history of Great Britain.
The 1980s were marked by a prolonged state of depression of the British
economy. Only in the second half of 1983 were there some indications of
industrial activity, when the gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 2 per
cent. However, industrial output even in 1986 remained lower than the pre-
crisis level. This temporary recovery was primarily due to North sea oil and
gas and the extension of services. The manufacturing industry the backbone
of the British economy continued to be depressed. 25 per cent of thecountry's industrial capacity remained idle. Though there was an improvement
in the balance of payments, the country's foreign debt remained high.
The government's economic policy was bent on encouraging private enterprise
and de-nationalization. The most profitable state owned enterprises were sold
out to private capital.
The home policy of the Thatcher cabinet was based on stringent principles of
monetarism associated with limiting the circulation of money. In order tostimulate capital investment the government shifted emphasis from direct
taxation to indirect, thus reducing direct taxes on the biggest monopolies
by 3.5 billion pounds (simultaneously increasing indirect taxes twice). State
expenditures were cut by 4 billion pounds which meant that social security
funds, construction, science and culture would be the main losers. The
Thatcher cabinet intensified the process of de-nationalization which hard hit
the steel, oil, aerospace and other industries, as well as air transport. In
October 1980 the government removed all restrictions on the export of
capital which existed for more than 40 years. Overseas investment in 197984
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equalled 50 billion pounds. The bank rate was raised to 17 per cent. These
measures explicitly expressed the interests of 'big business'. Moreover, the
encouragement given to the development of high technology industries at the
expense of the traditional industries of the country precipitated the problem of
mass unemployment, which by far exceeded 3.3 million in 1986 according to
official statistcs and by trade union estimates was more than 5 million. Themilitary expenditures, over 18 billion pounds in the 19856 fiscal year, a
22 per cent increase as compared with 1979, meant a deterioration of the
living standards of the British people. The Conservative government
launched an ambitious programme of stepping up nuclear arms, rearmament of
the British submarine fleet with Trident missiles. The Thatcher cabinet gave
full approval of British participation in the notorious 'star wars' project.
The foreign policy of the Conservative cabinet is motivated by the interests of
the British ruling class and by its commitments to NATO of which Britain is
an active participant.
The war between Britain and Argentina in 1982 over the disputed Falkland
Islands indicated that Britain was ready to use force to defend its territorial
ambitions overseas. The Falkland Islands or the Malvinas as the
Argentinians call them, situated in the South Atlantic at a distance of 400
miles from Argentine territory and more than 8,000 miles from Britain were
seized by the British colonizers in the 1830s. Argentina never recognizedBritish sovereignty over the islands. In 1982 war broke out between the two
countries. Britain using her military might and with full American backing
won the war, which cost the British people more than 2 billion pounds.
Moreover, further military construction on the islands meant 4 billion
pounds out of the budget. The British government attaches strategic
importance to the islands. The United Nations overwhelmingly backed
Argentina in her claims of sovereignty over the islands.The policy of Great Britain towards South Africa is motivated by the
interests of 'big business', which is deeply involved in the economy of South
Africa. The British monopolies derive great profits by exploiting the vast
resources of the state. This explains why Margaret Thatcher stubbornly
refused to impose sanctions against the apartheid regime defying the appeals
of the African and Asian states to take joint action against a white minority
regime based on terror and mass police reprisals against the African majority.
As regards Anglo-Soviet relations one should note their changeable character
with all their frosts and subsequent thaws. Recent years, especially after the
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official visit of the Soviet parliamentary delegation headed by M. Gorbachev
to Britain in 1984 are marked by most positive developments. There has been
an increase in the volume of bilateral trade which exceeds 2 billion roubles.
The official visits of the British Prime Minister to the Soviet Union in 1987
and of Geoffrey Howe, the Foreign Secretary, in 1988 contributed notably
toward the development of a dialogue between Britain and the Soviet Union inall fields of cooperation. However, the official state visit of M. Gorbachev to
Britain in 1989 with all the ensuing results heralded a new most positive page
in the history of Anglo-Soviet relations. The summit meeting between M.
Gorbachev and M. Thatcher gave a powerfull fillip to a marked improvement
of relations between the two states in all fields of cooperation in full keeping
with the concept of a new mentality in international relations advocated by
the Soviet government.
The British government greeted the INF (Intermediate Nuclear Forces) treaty
signed between the USSR and the USA in 1987. However, Margaret
Thatcher refused to abandon her nuclear deterrent policy. The champions of
peace demand that the British government should take practical steps to a
non-nuclear world and to an end of the arms race.
The home policy of the Thatcher Cabinet was characterized by new anti-trade
union legislation: three acts were passed in 19804 aimed at curbing trade
union activity and splitting the ranks of trade unionists. Moreover, moveswere taken to pass a fourth act banning support given by one union to
another in the event of a labour conflict.
The actions taken by the Conservatives led to a future polarization of
British society. Living standards in Britain in the 1980s were about 11 per
cent lower than the West-European average. The number of poor people
increased from 6.1 mln in 1979 to 11.9 mln in 1986. Statistics indicated that in
1987 every third adult in Britain was living on the verge or under the officialpoverty level. The gap between the rich and the poor widened greatly in the
years of Tory government. Unemployment figures indicate that about 10 per
cent of the economic active population remained jobless and a large percentage
was unemployed for more than a year. Especially hard hit are the young
people, women and the non-white population.
The working class of Great Britain is conducting a resolute struggle against
the onslaught of the Tory government under adverse conditions of mass
unemployment and stringent anti-working class legislation. Labour militancy
was reflected in the unique year long miners' strike of 19845 against the
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attempts of the Tory government to make thousands of workers jobless. There
was mass solidarity with the miners both at home and abroad. Workers of
more than 50 countries including the Soviet Union supported the British
miners. Once again the Britith working class displayed its militancy and
determination to resist the Tory onslaught. Working class unrest was vividly
expressed in the printers' strike of 1986, the actions taken by nurses and othermedical workers for the improvement of labour conditions within the
national health service in 1987 and many other labour disputes in the country.
The peace and anti-missile movement reached unheard-of heights, especially in
1982 3. Hundreds of thousands of people of all faiths and occupations
protested against nuclear arms, deployment of American missiles in Britain.
The mass protests at the Greenham Common base in which women of all ages
actively participated caught the sympathy of the people in Britain and
abroad. The shift to the left was reflected in the Labour party when a new
leader, Neil Kinnock, was elected. It was also reflected in the change of rules
in the Labour party in electing the leader and selecting MPs, in the positive
Labour programme of unilateral nuclear disarmament and support of the
latest peace proposals of the Soviet Union. Positive changes were adopted by
the latest congresses of the trade unions. The Communists in Great Britain
together with other progressives in the labour movement struggle to unite
all the left forces in the country against the onslaught of the monopolyclass. These aspirations were vividly expressed by the delegates of the 41st
Congress of the British Communist party held in December 1989.
In June 1987 the Conservatives won their third successive victory in the
general elections (42.3 per cent of the votes cast) securing 375 seats in the
House of Commons. However, in fact only a third of those who had electoral
rights voted for the Conservative party. A mere 75 per cent of the electorate
participated in the elections. The election results clearly manifested theundemocratic nature of the electoral system.
Different factors contributed to the victory of the Conservative party. The
capitalist mass media launched a mass campaign presenting the Tories and
their leader as the most efficient managers of the British state.
The elections were timed to coincide with a boom experienced by the economy
which benefited mainly from North Sea oil.
Margaret Thatcher won support among those sections of British society which
benefited from her policy of privatization: 'big business', the well-paid highly
skilled workers (the labour aristocracy), the new owners of houses. In the
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course of denationalization the Tory government sold out shares to
individual holders: by 1986 there were 3 million share holders in the country.
Cheap municipal housing was treated likewise: more than one million units of
municipal housing were sold out on favourable terms. As a result the well-paid
employees and workers became owners of individual housing. The reduction
of the inflation rate was most benefited by the well-to-do too. All in all acombination of these factors widely propagated by the bourgeois mass media
contributed to the Tory victory.
However, many serious analysts in the country, including the Labour party
maintain that the government's claims of success were inflated by distortion
and that these gains would not hold. The introduction of the community
charge or the poll tax met overwhelming opposition in the country. This led
to a serious setback experienced by the Conservative party in the local
election in May 1990 and to a fall of the popularity of the Prime minister.
Under such conditions the only option for the working class and all the
democratic forces in the country is to attain unity of action. The future
development of the country depends in the long end on the class-
consciousness of the working people, their unity and determination to
promote peace, security and friendship among the nations of the world.
Progress Test Questions and Assignments
Assess the economic position of Great Britain in the 1960s and 1970s.Explain the reasons of the difficulties of the state.
Analyse the working-class movement in these years, outline the role of the
British Communist party.
Observe the main foreign policy developments of the Conservative
governments. Narrate the main aspects of the policies of the Wilson Cabinet
(196470). Why was the prices and incomes policy unpopular with the
working class? How did the working class respond?Give the gist of the Industrial Relations Act. What toppled the Heath
government? How would you explain the unpopularity of the Wilson-
Callaghan policy line on labour relations?
Examine the history of British attempts to join the Common Market. What
were the consequences of Britain's entry in the EEC?
Explain the present state of the crisis in Northern Ireland. Examine the
roots of the crisis.
Analyse the home and foreign policies of the Thatcher government.
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Identify: CND, UCS, EEC or Common Market, the Social Contract,
monetarism, the Falkland Islands (the Malvinas), the INF treaty.
In written form summarize your observations on the basis of current press
reviews concerning Britain's policy towards the EEC.
POPULATIONNatural Population growthMigration Distribution Density Social structure Civil
We in Britain must always remember that we are part of the Continent, but
we must never forget that we are neighbours to it.
Henry Bolingbroke
Rich is rich and poor is poor And ne'er the twain shall meet. East is East
and West is West
And only one shall eat.
The micro-chip has come of age
And Man is obsolete.
Popular song from U. B. 40
1 he people who now inhabit the British Isles are descended mainly from
the people who inhabited them nearly 9 centuries ago. The English nation
was formed as a result of the amalgamation of the native population of the
British Isles the pre-Celts and the Celts with the invaders: the Germanic
tribes of the Angles, Saxons and Jutes, the Danes, the Normans. The last ofa long succession of invaders from Scadinavia and the Continent of Europe
were the Normans, a branch of the Scandinavian Vikings who, after settling in
Northern France, intermarrying with the French, and assimilating their
language and customs, conquered England in 1066. The language of this
nation was formed only in .the 14th century. It is mainly a marriage of
Anglo-Saxon and Norman-French, while the use of Celtic languages
persisted in Wales, Cornwall, the Isle of Man, the Highlands of Scotland andin Ireland. Today in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland,
English is the language predominantly spoken. In Wales, however, Welsh,
a form of British Celtic, is spoken by some 20 per cent of the population (about
half a million people). The Welsh Language Council, an official body,
promotes the use of the language and there is a number of bilingual schools
in Wales. In Scotland over 80,000 persons, mainly in the Highlands and
western coastal regions, speak the Scottish form of Gaelic. A few families
in Northern Ireland still speak the Irish form of Gaelic. But in general the
number of people speaking the above-mentioned languages other than
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English is declining. The Cornish variety of Celtic is no longer effectively a
living language, although there is a revival of cultural interest. For centuries
the British governments promoted the spread of English at the expense of
other languages. Moreover, at times it was strictly forbidden to study any of
the languages of the minorities living on the British Isles. Today some of the
country's ethnic minorities formed as a result of recent immigration havetheir own languages, normally as well as English. Among the Asian
community, for example, the most usual languages are Punjabi, Gujerati,
Bengali or Urdu, the languages of the Indian and Pakistani communities.
The available records do not enable any precise estimates to be made of the size
of the population until the beginning of the 19th century. Censuses of the
people of Great Britain have been taken regularly every 10 years since 1801,
except that there was no census in 1941 because of the Second World War.
The latest census was taken in 1981. It is believed, however, that at the end
of the llth century the population of Great Britain was about 2 million, while
at the end of the 17th century the population was about 6.5 million. The main
factor in this gradual growth of population was a slow natural increase, with
high death rates and, in particular, very high infant and maternal mortality.
Immigration began to play a more important role in population growth more
recently, especially from Commonwealth countries.
In number of population (57.1mln1990) Great Britain holds one of the firstplaces among the European countries. Britain ranks fourteenth in the world
in terms of population. The English make up over 4/5 of the total
population of the country. They inhabit England proper and many of them
live in industrial cities of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The
proportion of the Scotsmen, Welshmen and Irishmen is about 15 per cent. This
group includes foreigners too. The inhabitants of Wales, Scotland and
Northern Ireland have preserved their culture, originality and to a certaindegree their languages (in Wales and Scotland), but practically all speak
English. The most intensive growth of the population of Great Britain took
place in the 19th century, when the number of the inhabitants increased from
9 million to 38 million, despite mass emigration (mainly of the ruined
peasants and the unemployed of the towns).
The recent tendency as regards population growth is that of extremely small
growth. In fact in the period 19758 for the first years since records began
(other than in war) the population fell slightly. This trend common to
much of Western Europe, is mainly the result of a sharp fall in birth rates.
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Annual births have fallen by some 30 per cent since the mid-1960s. The upward
trend was resumed in 1979. Projections for the future suggest that the
traditional increase in population will be resumed, though growth will take
place at a much slower rate than was expected a few years ago. Britain's
total population is expected to be 58.4 mln in 2001 and 60 mln in 2020.
The country as a whole has a population density of about 233 people to thesquare kilometre (1989), but in England proper 363 people to the square
kilometre, in Wales 137, in Scotland 66, in Northern Ireland 112.
The Highlands of Scotland, the northern Pennines and mountainous Wales
are very sparsely populated. The most highly populated regions are the
industrial ' districts: South East England with Greater London, the
Midlands, Lancashire, West Yorkshire, South Wales, Clydeside in Scotland
and North-East England. In some of these districts the density reaches 1,000
and even more people per one square kilometre. In Greater London, for
example, it is 4,288 people per square kilometre.*"
Annual birth rates have fallen since the mid-1960s. The birth rates declined
from 18 live births per 1,000 population in 1966 to 13.6 in 1989. The main
reason accounting for the sharp drop in the birth rate is associated with the
social conditions in the country: the growth of unemployment, deterioration
of the living standards of the British people, social tension, expensive
housing, lack of pre-school institutions, etc. As a result of the drop of thebirth rate there is a substantial fall in the natural increase of the
population provided that the mortality rate remains more or less stable
about 12 per 1,000 population. During the last 50 years the natural increase
was very small 4-6 people per thousand and even lower. Thus the
country has a considerable per cent of the ageing population.
At birth the expectation of life for a man is just about 72 years and for a
woman it is 78 years. K. Marx in his time pointed out the dependence of thedeath rate on the incomes of the population. In Britain today the average life
expectancy among unskilled workers is 8 years shorter than among managers
and highly qualified specialists. The estimated age distribution of the British
population in mid-1989 is roughly as follows: under 16 years, about 20 per
cent; 16-64, 64 per cent; and 65 and over, 16 per cent. Some 18 per cent of
the population were over the normal retirement ages (65 for men and 60 for
women), compared with 15 per cent in 1961.
The main feature of the changing age structure is the increasing number of
elderly people. The lot of the elderly people in Britain is a serious social
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problem. The majority of the aged depend vitally on their meagre
pensions and in the face of inflation and cuts in social security they hardly
make ends meet. Traditionally Britain has a net outflow of people to the
rest of the world. During the 100 years, from 1836 till 1936 about 11 million
people left the British Isles. This mass emigration especially in the 19th
century was a movement of ruined peasants, the unemployed people whohoped to find new opportunities and happiness on new territories. The
migrants went mainly to North America (the USA, Canada), Australia, New
Zealand, South Africa, to other lands in Asia and Africa, where they
settled, spreading the economic, political and cultural influence of Great
Britain, as well as the English language, which became the state language
of many countries. Mass emigration from Great Britain stopped during and
after World War I, when the traditional receiving countries, such as the USA,
Canada and other countries imposed strict limitations on immigration. There
were periods when on the contrary the country experienced a large influx of
people. This was in the 1930s when there was a considerable flow of
refugees from continental Europe as a result of fascist persecution, and in
the late 1950s and early 1960s mainly the result of a large influx of people
from the West Indies and the Indian sub-continent. After the 1950s and in
the 1960s considerable numbers of people entered Britain from
Commonwealth countries, especially from the West Indies, Asia andAfrica and settled permanently in the country. They made an important
contribution to the development of the economy and the public services.
British monopolies derived great profits from the exploitation of cheap
migrant labour. The population of New Commonwealth (all Commonwealth
countries except Canada, Australia, New Zealand) and Pakistani ethnic
origin is over 2 million (about 3.6 per cent of the total population) of
whom 40 per cent were born in Britain. Nearly three quarters live in thesouth-east and in the
west Midlands. Although formally according to the Race Relations Act 1976
the migrants should be treated as equals, they suffer from race discrimination.
They occupy low-status and poorly paid jobs in poor environments of the
older towns (the slums), unemployment is very high among these ethnic
groups. The desperate conditions of these ethnic groups found expression in
the violent riots which took place in Brixton (London), Manchester,
Liverpool and other cities recently. The police brutally crushed the protest
movement of the coloured people of Britain. Even an official enquiry was
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compelled to acknowledge the abnormal conditions under which the coloured
minorities live and work in Britain. This report known as the Scarman Report
was compelled to acknowledge the fact that the coloured people 'are born and
raised in insecure social and economic conditions and in an impoverished
physical environment', which have a negative effect on their future life.
It is necessary to note that today in Britain there are also sizeable groups ofAmericans, Australians, Chinese and various European communities such as
Greek and Turkish Cypriots, Italians and Spaniards living in Britain. In the
last generation British society has therefore become more multi-racial as
ethnic minority groups from almost all parts of the world have made a
permanent home in the country. Although a small proportion of the total
population, they represent a significant element in certain areas (in the urban
centres, especially the largest towns, and in particular areas within these
centres). Regarding migration one should note that the traditional pattern of
migration in Britain has been maintained recently, with the exception in
1979 and 1986 when more came than left.
There are about 6 per cent more male than female births every year.
Because of the higher mortality of men at all ages, however, there is a
turning point, at about 50 years of age, at which the number of women
exceeds the number of men. This imbalance increases with age so that there
is a preponderance of women among the elderly. In the population as awhole there are nearly 105 females to every 100 males.
Marriage trends since the 1930s have been towards a higher proportion of
people marrying and an earlier age pattern. The proportion of the
population of Great Britain who were or had been married rose from
about 50 per cent in 1939 to 60 per cent in the 1980s, while the proportion of
single persons in the population aged 16 years or over fell from 33.3 per cent
to 23.4 per cent. The average age for first marriages is just over 26 for menand 24 for women with a marked fall in the proportion of church
marriages: today more than 50 per cent of marriages have been solemnized
by a civil ceremony in a Register office. The proportions of people divorcing
are growing: in 1989 about 13 decrees of divorce were made absolute for
every 1,000 married couples in England and Wales, compared with 2 in 1961,
though the rates are lower in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The population of England is and has been for centuries, greater than that
of all other parts of Britain. The distribution of the British population by
country is shown in the following table.
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Population 197
Distribution of the British Population by Country (1989)
Englan
Wales Scotlan
Norther
United
Population 47,407 2,836 5,112 1,575 56,930
Population 363 137 66 112 233
As regards the proportion of urban population Britain probably holds the
first place in the world. Over 90 per cent of its population live in towns. In
Britain there are 91 towns with the population of over 100 thousand people.
About one third of the country's population is concentrated in the town
districts, which comprise numerous merged towns and are called
conurbations. The seven major metropolitan areas which have been denotedas 'conurbations' in successive population censuses accommodate a third of
Great Britain's people while comprising less than three per cent of the total
land area. They are: Greater London, Central Clydeside, Merseyside, South-
East Lancashire, Tyneside, the West Midlands and West Yorkshire. These
regions are famous for their poor and worn out residential districts and high
population density and narrow streets of old towns and cities. They create
very serious problems, including traffic congestion. The proportion of
residents in Greater London and most of the metropolitan areas of England
has recently been falling. People, particularly the well-to-do, have tended to
leave city centres and conurbations because of their unhealthy environment,
although such migration may not necessarily mean a change of job but rather
an increase in the distance of travel to and from work. In other cases it has
been a consequence of falling employment in city centres.
More than 1.5 million people left major British cities during the 10 years
between the censuses of 1971 and 1981. The figures of the 1981 census
indicate that the larger the city, the larger the exodus. Greater London's
population fell by 756,000 to under 7 million for the first time since 1901. In
some districts of London, such as Kensington and Chelsea the population fell by
almost 30 per cent. Among the many reasons which have contributed to this
exodus (some were referred to above) one should also point out the unhealthy
environment, transport congestion, noise pollution, poor municipal services,
the growing crime rate. Soaring rents and high unemployment are alsoimportant factors which drive the people out of the big cities.
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In general about half the population lives in a belt across England with
south Lancashire and west Yorkshire at one end, and the London area at
the other, having the industrialized Midlands at its centre.
Other areas with large populations are: the central lowlands of Scotland;
north-east England from north of the river Tyne down to the river Tees; south-
west Wales; the Bristol area; and the English Channel coast from Poole, inDorset, eastwards. Less densely populated areas are the eastern fringes of
England between the Wash and the Thames estuary, and the far south-west.
Rural settlements of Great Britain differ from the traditional villages situated
in other countries. They are located not far from towns and resemble their
suburbs. They are inhabited by farm workers, clergymen, teachers, shop-keepers,
old-age people. Lately there has been a strong influx of townsmen to villages,
where houses are cheaper. Farmers do not live in such places. The farmers
live in isolated farms scattered all over the farm land.
The development of capitalism in Britain has led to a sharp class stratification
of the population. This in its turn increased the antagonism between the two
main classes of British society the working class and the bourgeoisie. In
1854 K. Marx noted that in Britain there was no extensive class of peasantry,
or of artisans, typical of many continental European countries. In Britain there
occurred a complete break between property and labour.*
There is no capitalist country in the world which has such a great percentageof workers and employees as it is in Britain. They comprise 92 per cent of the
gainfully occupied population.
Despite the propaganda bluff of British ideologists that Britain is a welfare state,
where there is equality and social justice this is far from true. According to the
official report 'Inequality in Contemporary Britain' 1 per cent of the
population of Great Britain owns 25 per cent of private property in the country
and 5 per cent of the population owns 50 per cent of the property. At the sametime 80 per cent of the population owns less of the national wealth than 1
per cent of the population. The bourgeois newspaperDaily Telegraph the
mouthpiece of the Conservative party openly states, 'We are to rid ourselves
of the illusion that postwar Britain is a country of social justice. In a free
society social justice is unthinkable'.
The 1980s witnessed a steady growth of mass unemployment and a deterioration
of the living standards of the people. The number of officially unemployed
increased from 1.3 mln in 1979 to 3.3 mln in the mid-1980s, though trade union
estimates indicated a figure of 4 mln jobless. Moreover, the number of people
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unemployed for more than a year increased notably. Especially hard hit are the
regions of the North, the North-West, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The number of poor people in the country reached about 12 mln. Statistics
indicated that in 1987 every third adult in Britain was living on the verge or
under the official poverty level. There are more than 200 thousand homeless in
the country. Income tax eats away 30 per cent of the wages of the workingpeople. At the same time as a result of the incentives created by the
Conservative government, the profits and dividends of the large firms and
corporations soared, and the rich became still richer while the poor poorer.
The number of millionaires increased from 1982 to 1987 by 40 per cent
reaching the figure of 7 thousand. Simultaneously, in the same period the
number of homeless increased by 38 per cent.
Today the total working population is over 26 mln of which workers and
employees comprise about 22 mln, the self-employed (that is owners of big and
small enterprises, farmers, etc.) exceed 1.5 mln.
Civil employment is as follows (the proportion engaged in different industries
and services, per cent): 1.6 1.4 24.3 5.2 1.4 5.9 13.3 32.6 6.7 7.6
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing industries
ConstructionGas, electricity and water
Transport and communications
Distributive trades
Professional, financial, scientific
and other services
National and local government services
Employers and self-employed(all industries and services) 100.0
The most notable trend in the employment pattern during the last years has
been the growth of people employed in services. This is a typical feature
which is observed in all developed countries. Such developments reflect
improved labour efficiency in industry, a change of employment patterns
caused by growth of high technology industries and a comparative decline of
the old traditional industries. Hence surplus labour is released and much of it
can be directed to services. Another important factor is the growth of the role
of science and technology in the life of the economy. International tourism also
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boosted the development of the service sector. The capitalists besides political
parties have their own industrial organization which deals with the problems of
management, industry, labour relations, employment, etc. This organization is
known as the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) with the central
headquarters and local organizations all over the country.
Progress Test Questions and AssignmentsWhat are the main languages spoken in Great Britain today?
Speak of the numerical growth of the population of Britain in the past,
present and future.
How densely is the country populated?
Narrate the main factors of the natural growth of the population.
1 200 Population
5 Describe the role of migration in the growth of the population and the
consequences of immigration.
Discuss the distribution of the population urban and rural, the
tendencies of movement out of the cities. Name the main conurbations.
Give a detailed account of the class and social structure of British
society. Britain a country of two nations.
Write a two-page essay about the position of the non-white
population in contemporary Britain.E
SYSTEMovernmentDemocracy must be democratic in substance, not only in form. This means
that the process of choosing and changing holders of power shall be
unaffected by privilege of established organization and wealth, that the
holders of political power, when an election comes, shall compete with their
opponents on equal terms.
Lord Beveridge