Who was the U.K.’s last decent PM?
Discussion
BJ has lowered the bar even further than I imagined possible when he became PM but looking back at his predecessors I’m struggling to find a good or decent one.
TM failed to get Brexit done and was kicked out. Although at least I don’t recall any scandals.
DC is behind the whole Brexit mess and then buggered off rather than take responsibility.
GB should never have been PM.
TB was quite successful but his legacy is tainted by the Iraq war.
JM was a bit grey but his claim to being decent undermined by his affair with EC.
MT was a very divisive figure and was also booted out by her party.
JC - mmm - I was too young at the time to understand politics. He lost an election and I recall there were problems with the winter of discontent but was he a bad PM?
Being PM is difficult but it doesn’t seem like there have been many good ones. I am not confident BJ’s replacement will be better.
TM failed to get Brexit done and was kicked out. Although at least I don’t recall any scandals.
DC is behind the whole Brexit mess and then buggered off rather than take responsibility.
GB should never have been PM.
TB was quite successful but his legacy is tainted by the Iraq war.
JM was a bit grey but his claim to being decent undermined by his affair with EC.
MT was a very divisive figure and was also booted out by her party.
JC - mmm - I was too young at the time to understand politics. He lost an election and I recall there were problems with the winter of discontent but was he a bad PM?
Being PM is difficult but it doesn’t seem like there have been many good ones. I am not confident BJ’s replacement will be better.
Although she was very divisive, there were questions over her son's activities and left under a cloud Maggie was a woman of integrity.
Even if she got things wrong (and she did) she did not shirk responsibility. She always faced things head on.
She created an environment for many people to do well in life with hard work. I am certainly grateful for the opportunities available to me in that period.
She would not even recognise the Tory party of today full as it is of grifters and chancers.
Even if she got things wrong (and she did) she did not shirk responsibility. She always faced things head on.
She created an environment for many people to do well in life with hard work. I am certainly grateful for the opportunities available to me in that period.
She would not even recognise the Tory party of today full as it is of grifters and chancers.
Jim Callaghan (LJC, not JC) was a thoroughly decent man. Honest and principled, the antithesis of Boris. Because he was old school Labour, the unions assumed he would give them whatever they wanted. When he tried to explain the finances wouldn't allow it, they decided to teach him a lesson with the winter of discontent. Result, the unions ended up with Thatcher who virtually destroyed them.
Mobile Chicane said:
Much as I loathed Thatcher's policies, I admired her leadership.
Cabinets were populated back them with people of real gravitas. I don't know what Brittain, Carrington, Lawson, Howe, Neave, Walker, Tebbit, Whitelaw and the like would have of Dorries, Patel, Truss, Schapps, Hancock and all the other political pygmies. As Starmer said, charge of the lightweight brigade. Probably Thatcher for me.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
OzzyR1 said:
Probably Thatcher for me.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
To be fair, Tony Blair was never on the fence, he was radically on the American side of it.
But remember the early Blair days of 1997 (?), it felt as if anything was possible, such was the deep seated need for change from the old Tory Government.
And Cameron Clegg was a good time. Clegg did an excellent job of curbing the excess of the Tory party. He should have been handsomely rewarded for that, not kicked in the balls and his party exiled to the wastelands for decades.
We've had some good politicians let down by an archaic system of polarisation, resulting in valid views not being heard, and the country suffering as a result.
But remember the early Blair days of 1997 (?), it felt as if anything was possible, such was the deep seated need for change from the old Tory Government.
And Cameron Clegg was a good time. Clegg did an excellent job of curbing the excess of the Tory party. He should have been handsomely rewarded for that, not kicked in the balls and his party exiled to the wastelands for decades.
We've had some good politicians let down by an archaic system of polarisation, resulting in valid views not being heard, and the country suffering as a result.
It depends what you mean by 'decent'. Policies, morals, personality, what?
I think both Cameron and May were, and are, decent human beings. I would happily cook dinner for either of them and host them at my table.
However, Cameron rolled the Brexit dice and lost - a huge risk.
May tried to implement something that wasn't really Brexit, in my opinion, and was ousted.
I think both Cameron and May were, and are, decent human beings. I would happily cook dinner for either of them and host them at my table.
However, Cameron rolled the Brexit dice and lost - a huge risk.
May tried to implement something that wasn't really Brexit, in my opinion, and was ousted.
bearman68 said:
To be fair, Tony Blair was never on the fence, he was radically on the American side of it.
But remember the early Blair days of 1997 (?), it felt as if anything was possible, such was the deep seated need for change from the old Tory Government.
And Cameron Clegg was a good time. Clegg did an excellent job of curbing the excess of the Tory party. He should have been handsomely rewarded for that, not kicked in the balls and his party exiled to the wastelands for decades.
We've had some good politicians let down by an archaic system of polarisation, resulting in valid views not being heard, and the country suffering as a result.
The untold damage Blair did to this country..But remember the early Blair days of 1997 (?), it felt as if anything was possible, such was the deep seated need for change from the old Tory Government.
And Cameron Clegg was a good time. Clegg did an excellent job of curbing the excess of the Tory party. He should have been handsomely rewarded for that, not kicked in the balls and his party exiled to the wastelands for decades.
We've had some good politicians let down by an archaic system of polarisation, resulting in valid views not being heard, and the country suffering as a result.
Not sure if we will recover , f
king tt he was ..Mobile Chicane said:
What a brilliant quote - thanks for posting.I always liked Benn. Much like his view on Thatcher, I disagreed with many of his political views, but he was an honest man.
The problem with judging all of these PMs so close to when they were in power is that their times all had to come to an end (what doesn't), and that tends to be what you remember most.
I was a fan of Thatcher, but that was largely driven by an intense dislike for unions driven by the miners' strike - I lived round the corner from Orgreave, and my dad worked in the emergency services. Not good times. I have vivid memories of the fools stood outside Sheffield town hall, still trying to prove a point many years after the whole thing was done with.
Since then? None have really appealed. I tend to agree with Gecko that the Cameron/Clegg partnership was probably best, and possibly serves as a decent advert for coalition govt. Don't see it happening again though for a while. And there were things done in that time that I disagreed with massively (the vote on our voting system being the biggest).
To use Benn's quote, every single one since Thatcher has been a weathercock. With a capital 'C'.
Mobile Chicane said:
OzzyR1 said:
Probably Thatcher for me.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
Whether she was "decent" depended on your situation at the time; real love or hate stuff
One thing you could rely on with Thatcher was that there was no avoiding a question, no umming or aahing, no maybes or perhaps; she stated her opinion and stood by it come what may.
Can't think of a PM since who has had the balls to do the same; everyone now seems to sit on the fence, scared to express an opinion till they think they can judge which way the tide of public opinion is heading.
Who is a signpost in any current political party, can't think of a single one. Not sure how we are expected to select a leader for the country when all we can do is sift through mediocrity for the "least worst".
Murph7355 said:
Mobile Chicane said:
What a brilliant quote - thanks for posting.I always liked Benn. Much like his view on Thatcher, I disagreed with many of his political views, but he was an honest man.
The problem with judging all of these PMs so close to when they were in power is that their times all had to come to an end (what doesn't), and that tends to be what you remember most.
I was a fan of Thatcher, but that was largely driven by an intense dislike for unions driven by the miners' strike - I lived round the corner from Orgreave, and my dad worked in the emergency services. Not good times. I have vivid memories of the fools stood outside Sheffield town hall, still trying to prove a point many years after the whole thing was done with.
Since then? None have really appealed. I tend to agree with Gecko that the Cameron/Clegg partnership was probably best, and possibly serves as a decent advert for coalition govt. Don't see it happening again though for a while. And there were things done in that time that I disagreed with massively (the vote on our voting system being the biggest).
To use Benn's quote, every single one since Thatcher has been a weathercock. With a capital 'C'.
Mobile Chicane said:
Murph7355 said:
Mobile Chicane said:
What a brilliant quote - thanks for posting.I always liked Benn. Much like his view on Thatcher, I disagreed with many of his political views, but he was an honest man.
The problem with judging all of these PMs so close to when they were in power is that their times all had to come to an end (what doesn't), and that tends to be what you remember most.
I was a fan of Thatcher, but that was largely driven by an intense dislike for unions driven by the miners' strike - I lived round the corner from Orgreave, and my dad worked in the emergency services. Not good times. I have vivid memories of the fools stood outside Sheffield town hall, still trying to prove a point many years after the whole thing was done with.
Since then? None have really appealed. I tend to agree with Gecko that the Cameron/Clegg partnership was probably best, and possibly serves as a decent advert for coalition govt. Don't see it happening again though for a while. And there were things done in that time that I disagreed with massively (the vote on our voting system being the biggest).
To use Benn's quote, every single one since Thatcher has been a weathercock. With a capital 'C'.
Can’t say I was a Thatcher fan but she was principled. Ironically although her cabinet were lampooned by Spitting Image as being weak (apart from Tebbit) they now seem like political giants compared to the lightweights and grifters in the Tory party today. Unfortunately the opposition parties are also a shambles.
Wills2 said:
Boringvolvodriver said:
Seventy said:
Lloyd George.
My father knew himLloyd George was as much of a rogue as any of them.
So that means the poster is saying LG is his grandfather.
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