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The Collapse of Keynesian Welfarism 1970–1979: Heath, Wilson, Callaghan

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Disjunctive Prime Ministerial Leadership in British Politics

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Abstract

As prime ministers in the 1970s, Edward Heath, Harold Wilson, and James Callaghan grappled unsuccessfully with the deepening vulnerabilities, tensions, and contradictions, and the breakdown of the mixed-economy Keynesian welfare-state regime. Faced with growing public disillusion, they seemed unable to develop successful strategies for rebuilding or reconstructing the crumbling electoral coalitions supporting their parties. Union militancy, strikes, and confrontations over pay policy put a serious question mark against the established tripartite corporate settlement between government, labour, and capital. The international economic scene was volatile and challenging, and the emergence of ‘stagflation’ posed a fundamental challenge to the established Keynesian ‘conventional wisdom’. Heath’s government (1970–1974) failed to solve any of the major governing challenges of the time, and his actions in office undermined support for the regime within the Conservative Party. Wilson (1974–1976) steered some difficult decisions through but could not resolve the central economic problems, only buying time. Nor was Callaghan (1976–1979) able to chart a new course for his party, government, or the regime, and his pragmatism was in the end ineffective and overwhelmed.

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  1. Department of Politics and International Relations, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK

    Christopher Byrne

  2. School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK

    Nick Randall

  3. School of Politics and International Studies, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK

    Kevin Theakston

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Byrne, C., Randall, N., Theakston, K. (2020). The Collapse of Keynesian Welfarism 1970–1979: Heath, Wilson, Callaghan. In: Disjunctive Prime Ministerial Leadership in British Politics. Palgrave Studies in Political Leadership. Palgrave Pivot, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44911-7_3

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