Thinkers and political figures
Portrait: Via Wikimedia Commons (opens in a new tab) · Public domain
Margaret Thatcher
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Era
- 1925–2013
- Tradition
- Market conservatism
Prime Minister who privatised state industries, curtailed trade union power, cut direct taxation and defended national sovereignty against deeper European integration.
01
Documented positions
Documented positions come from the sources listed. Similarity is this project’s inference from those positions, and is a much weaker claim.
- Privatised British Telecom, British Gas, British Airways and other state industries
- Legislated to restrict trade union powers, including on strike ballots and secondary action
- Cut the top rate of income tax and shifted taxation toward consumption
- Sold council housing to tenants through the Right to Buy
- Opposed further transfers of sovereignty to European institutions (Bruges speech, 1988)
02
Where it sits on each dimension
Wealth and inequality
86
RedistributionMarket outcomes
Evidence: Well documented
The state in the economy
88
Active stateLimited state
Evidence: Well documented
Personal liberty
45
Collective orderIndividual freedom
Evidence: Documented
Tradition and change
20
ContinuityReform
Evidence: Well documented
Nation and the world
78
InternationalistNationalist
Evidence: Well documented
Religion and the state
60
Secular stateReligion in public life
Evidence: Documented
Power and its limits
55
Concentrated authorityChecks and pluralism
Evidence: Documented
Environment and growth
42
Production firstProtection first
Evidence: Documented
Crime and punishment
20
PunishmentRehabilitation
Evidence: Documented
Sources
- Margaret Thatcher, Speech to the College of Europe (the Bruges speech) · 1988 Source (opens in a new tab)
- Employment Acts 1980, 1982, 1988 and Trade Union Act 1984 · Parliament of the United Kingdom
Last verified: