Brighton and Hove Conservatives recently held a special lunch for its members to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher becoming leader of The Conservative Party.
In 1975 Mrs Thatcher was originally considered an outside candidate against then leader, Edward Heath, who had lost three out of the previous four general elections. Her leadership campaign was masterminded by Airey Neave, a fellow MP and in the war the first prisoner of war to escape from Colditz. Neave convinced enough Tory MPs to vote for Mrs Thatcher in the first round of the contest, not because they thought she had a chance of winning, but because they wanted to push Heath out of the race so a more suitable candidate could come forward.
The results of the first ballot were: Heath 119, Thatcher 130.
Heath immediately withdrew from the race.
Having stormed to victory in the first ballot, Mrs Thatcher’s ascent was unassailable and she easily won the second round outright. She was declared leader on the 11th of February 1975.
Some members of the Labour Party reputedly said, “Gentleman, we’ve just won the next election,” believing they would easily be able to defeat the Tories led by a woman. However, Mrs Thatcher’s career soared beyond all expectations, and four years later her extraordinary term as prime minister would begin.
Mike Bates OBE, Deputy Chair, said: “I worked in Number Ten as a Press Officer in the late 1980s. Mrs Thatcher was very caring with her staff and not always ‘The Iron Lady’ as people might expect. However, she enjoyed the nickname and did not discourage it!”
Mark Watson, Chairman, said, “I met Lady Thatcher, as she was then, while campaigning for our candidate in Eastleigh during the 2001 general election. She was still immensely popular among not only our voters but many who had changed to Labour or LibDems. As she did for many of the volunteers, she personally thanked me and told me how very much she appreciated my help."
Ben, local party member said, “Margaret Thatcher was the complete, consummate politician. Before her, British politics was mainly centred on men in grey suits. Mrs Thatcher took advice from Laurence Olivier to help her diction and public speaking. She took advice from producer/strategist Gordon Reece about how to dress and present herself on television. Most of all Margaret Thatcher was strong-willed, combative and always on top of her brief, which made her a formidable opponent for other politicians, journalists and just about anyone who crossed her path.
We need her courageous, steely style of politics today to save our country.”
