Margaret Thatcher, the Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1979 to 1990, died at the age of 87 on 8th April 2013.
Known as the Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher was Britain’s first female prime minister, and made many notable changes during her 3 terms of office.
Her Election Wins:
- May 3rd 1979. She won her first term with a margin of 43 seats. 339 seats out of 635.
- 9th June 1983. She won her seconds term with an increased margin of 144. 397 seats out of 650.
- 11th June 1987. She won her third term with 376 seats out of 650, becoming the first prime minister in the 20th century to win three successive terms of office.
Some of her Achievements in office.
- Reduced the top rate of Income tax from 83% to 60% on earned income
- Reduced the top rate of Income Tax from 98% to 60% on unearned income
- The reform of trades unions
- The restructuring of the British economy
- Subsidies to loss-making industries were ended
- Reduced the top rate of Income tax from 60% to 40% on earned income
- Unemployment rose to its highest level since 1930; Over 3 million
- The Poll Tax…
Her “Iron Lady” dealings with the European Community gained a huge rebate on Britain’s contribution to the European Union.
When the Argentinians took over the Falkland Islands in April 1982, expecting no resistance, as many people would have expected, the Iron Lady proved that Britain was not as weak as many thought. Within six weeks, and the launch of an armada, Britain removed the Argentinians from the Falklands.
As the go-between for Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, she played a part in ending the Cold War, with the fall of the Berlin wall in November 1989 and the end of the Soviet Union over the next few years.
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