撒切尔夫人在1992年保守党候选人大会上的演讲

Speech to Conservative Candidates Conference

 

Margaret Thatcher

 

22 Mar 1992

 

Conservative Central Office, Smith Square, Westminster

 

Mr Chairman, [John Major] Prime Minister, Mr Onslow, and colleagues. I nearly said fellow candidates, because old habits die hard. But this time it’s a little bit different because I’m not standing for Finchley, and because we have John Major as our Leader and Prime Minister and we could not have chosen better.

 

I was lucky in three elections to have a manifesto with my approach stamped upon it. This manifesto has John Major’s personality stamped on it and that is absolutely right. But amid the enormous detail, in this very full document, we must make sure that the electors do not lose sight of the really big issues that are at stake in this Election.

 

Nor must they lose sight of the fact that the Labour and Socialist principles upon which their manifesto is founded are totally different from those which have inspired all our policies so successfully. We must make certain they know the true division between us.

 

When I’m on the election hustings, as I frequently am, indeed I am most days, from dawn till dusk, the most frequent phrase I hear from people of all ages and backgrounds as they come up to me in the street, the thing that strikes them most of the past 12 years of Conservative government, is this. They say, ‘Thank you for what you have done for our country’. They are thanking all of us for the principles for which we stand. They are thanking all of us for translating them into practice. They are thanking all of us for having the courage to see them through to success. And they are telling us something else—that, for the overwhelming majority of people in this country, the high standing and reputation of our country overseas matters to each and every one of our citizens.

 

If that is to continue, our task is not yet finished. Everything we have gained could so easily be lost unless we are returned for a fourth term under John Major’s leadership. So let me just make three points. I notice that famous preacher, John Donne, always made just three points, and it’s a very good rule. People can’t usually digest more.

 

First, some commentators seem to suggest that the two main parties are now lookalike. A proposition I totally reject. The fact is, Labour are still Socialist and they deliberately set out to impose more government control over people’s lives. That is where their whole belief starts.

 

It starts with the power of government over the lives of the people. That is the reason why they increase taxation—more power for them over our money, less power for the citizen.

 

That is why they multiply controls and bureaucracy—more power for them, less for the wealth creators of our country.

 

That is why they like nationalisation—more control over industry.

 

That is why they reject privatisation and wider share ownership.

 

That is why they want more council housing—because they want to have more control over the lives of the housing of the people and to use it for political purposes as in the Camdens and the Lambeths.

 

That is why they oppose our plans for giving your doctors and nurses, your teachers and parents, more say, more responsibility, more power to decide near the point at which the decision has to be taken.

 

That’s why they oppose our plans for doing that in hospitals and in schools—they would rather have it decided by a bureaucratic level above.

 

That is the essence of their creed—government controls over the lives of the people—and it runs through all of their policies.

 

That’s why they love that Socialist Delors’ Socialist Charter. When will they learn? You cannot build Jerusalem in Brussels.

 

They haven’t changed their Socialist spots. They’ve just changed their suits.

 

Mr Chairman, remember this. All the reforms we have brought about, the high reputation that we have gained for our country, they fought against tooth and nail while they were going through Parliament.

 

Our marvellous achievements, our marvellous reputation, would never have been secured unless we Conservatives had been in power for the last 12 years.

 

And particularly the trade union reforms: it wasn’t the Labour Party who fought Scargill, it was we who fought Scargill, day after day for a year through the miners’ strike.

 

And we got our judgement of human nature right. We knew that our trade union reforms, which gave more power to the ordinary members, would give them the things they wanted. We knew they would rather work to support their families than strike.

 

And, my goodness, were we magnificently supported by the working miners who believed in us, who believed in the same principles that we believed in, and only wanted a chance to demonstrate their belief.

 

Mr Chairman, we must continue to put across our positive policies, the principles that underlie them and the splendid results we have achieved. That each and every person is born with God-given talents and abilities and it is his right to be able to express and develop those talents and abilities, both in his interest and that of his country as a whole.

 

And the government’s task, the government’s responsibility is not to take away those talents, or diminish them, but to provide the right framework within which they and the larger freedoms may flourish.

 

That is exactly what we have done. That is our duty—the right framework of law for enterprise. The duty to see that the currency is sound and remains sound, so that the savings put away at the grandson’s christening, will still buy the same amount of goods when he comes of age. That is what a sound currency means.

 

And that we keep government expenditure within the limits of comparatively low taxation so we do not have to borrow too much, or take an ever increasing amount of tax away from the people.

 

Human wants are not satisfied by endless political promises. The wealth of nations (and remember Adam Smith said the wealth of nations as well as the wealth of individuals) the wealth of nations comes from the boundless energies and enterprise of individuals determined to improve their lot. That is the way the wealth and the well-being of a nation is created. That is where the resources come from to improve our great public services. And why we have been able to do so much more for them than the Socialists were ever able to do before us.

 

Now, my second point, and it won’t be quite as long as the first point—the first point went right to the heart of everything we believe in—but I assure you the second and third points get a little bit briefer. And I’m going to follow Chris. So Press please take note, you’ll find we all say the same thing.

 

The second vital point is that we continue strong defence policies—including the nuclear deterrent whose possession was bitterly opposed by the Kinnock Socialists.

 

It is important to realise that this century saw the rise and the defeat of fascism, at great sacrifice in two World Wars. This century also saw the rise and crumbling of Communism without a great holocaust, without another great world war. And part of the reason that happened was because we always kept our defences strong and our alliances ever-green.

 

That, together with the battle of ideas which we took into the Communist camp, is what brought about the crumbling of Communism.

 

But, as always, when large empires which have been held together by force fragment—as they always do—times are very uncertain. In politics the unexpected happens. We know that from the Falklands. We knew that the day Saddam Hussein went into Kuwait. The Prime Minister and I were both involved in defeating that tyranny.

 

But thanks to our strong defence policy we, together with the United States, didn’t hesitate in sending the Forces to the Gulf. We were able to know immediately that we had all the right ships, all the right aircraft including the tornadoes, all the right tanks, because of sound defence decisions taken eight to ten years beforehand.

 

If Conservative Government hadn’t increased public expenditure on defence, hadn’t gone for the tornado, hadn’t taken all the right decisions, it would have shackled our ability to deal with the tyrant at the time when he struck.

 

The lesson is clear. As our generation was able to react immediately and effectively, so we must not fail future generations by denying them the same security, the same strong defence whatever happens.

 

And it’s not only having all of the tanks and equipment that matters. It is knowing that you have a government in power which has the will to use them if need be.

 

And now my third point. I hear the Press talking about a hung Parliament.

 

Mr Chairman, a hung Parliament would hang the future of our country.

 

We have been able to take strong decisions and Prime Minister Major has been able to take strong decisions and show strong leadership because we had a good sound majority behind us.

 

Just look at some countries that have had coalition governments. You may have read about Belgium in the papers in the last few weeks. It took them 100 days to form a new government. What would have happened if anything vital had come up during that time? Did it help their main decisions? Did it help their deficit to come down? Not a bit of it. They’ve got one of the worst deficits in Europe. Not surprising with a coalition government. No-one has got the guts to stand up and say no to public expenditure. So they get a big deficit. Does continuous coalition government help them to stand up against the tyrant? No. When we wanted to buy munitions they wouldn’t sell them to us. So, do not go for coalitions—ever.

 

We want a strong decisive majority which enables us to continue the way in which we have, which enables Prime Minister Major to continue the strong leadership which he has already demonstrated to the people of this country and overseas.

 

There can be no doubt that a new, clear mandate to Prime Minister Major offers the best hope of solving our present problems, of continuing the economic advance which the 1980s began, and of ensuring that Britain’s reputation rides high in the counsels of the world.

 

Prime Minister, your leadership is proven. It will be our most earnest endeavour to win that further period in office, that we believe you need and we believe our country deserves.