1970–1974: The Success and Failure of Mr Heath

Abstract

When asked immediately after the election why the Conservatives had won and why Labour had lost, one answer emerged to both questions, ‘the cost of living’, mentioned by around one in four electors. No other reason was given by more than one in ten. The public’s initial reaction to Mr Heath as Prime Minister was only marginally better than their rating of him as Conservative leader: their final verdict of him before the election gave him a rating of 28 per cent, rising to 35 per cent after the event, though 29 per cent said that it was too early to say. In contrast, around three in five thought that Mr Wilson was proving a good leader of the Labour party and almost two in three wanted him to carry on, despite the lost election. The Conservatives emerged from the election as the party the public felt could best handle the problems of the economy, defence, education, the Common Market, prices and strikes. Out of 7 issues, Labour was thought to be able to do better on only one - the National Health Service.