Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 4 May 1979 to 28 November 1990, during which time she led a Conservative

majority government A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. This is as opposed to a minority government, where the largest party in a legislature only has a plurality of seats. ...

. She was the first woman to hold that office. During her premiership, Thatcher moved to liberalise the British economy through

deregulation Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a ...

privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

, and the promotion of entrepreneurialism. This article details the third Thatcher ministry she led at the invitation of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

from 1987 to 1990.

Election

The Conservatives were elected for a third successive term in June 1987, with a majority of 102 seats. It enabled

to become the longest-serving Prime Minister of the 20th century, as Britain's economic recovery continued.

Fate

Then, on 1 November 1990, came the first of a series of events which would spell the end of

's years in power.

Sir Geoffrey Howe Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe, Baron Howe of Aberavon, (20 December 1926 – 9 October 2015) was a British Conservative politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1989 to 1990. Howe was Margaret Thatcher ...

, the Deputy Prime Minister, long resentful of being ousted as

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

, resigned from the cabinet over its European policy. Soon afterward, in his resignation speech in the House of Commons, he publicly denounced Thatcher, having once been one of her closest allies, personally and for her hostility towards the programmes of the European Community. On 14 November, former cabinet minister Michael Heseltine challenged Thatcher's leadership. Thatcher polled higher than him in the first round of the leadership contest, but failed to gain an outright victory in the first round of voting. Within minutes of the result being announced, Thatcher informed reporters that she intended to let her name go forward for the second ballot. However, on 22 November, before a second round of the contest could take place,

announced her resignation as Prime Minister and Leader of the Conservative Party after more than 11 years, explaining that she was resigning to make way for a leader more likely to win the next general election. Her successor was the

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament ...

, who was elected on 27 November 1990, and who at 47 became the youngest Conservative Prime Minister of the 20th century.

Cabinets

June 1987 to July 1989

– Prime Minister * The Viscount Whitelaw – Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the House of Lords and

Lord President of the Council The lord president of the Council is the presiding officer of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and the fourth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State, ranking below the Lord High Treasurer but above the ...

* The Lord Havers –

Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The ...

* John Wakeham – Leader of the House of Commons and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal * Nigel Lawson –

–

Chief Secretary to the Treasury The chief secretary to the Treasury is a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom. The office is the second most senior in the Treasury, after the chancellor of the Exchequer. The office was created in 1961, to share the burden ...

* Geoffrey Howe – Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs * Douglas Hurd – Secretary of State for the Home Department *

John MacGregor John MacGregor, John Macgregor or John McGregor may refer to: Sportsmen * John McGregor (footballer, born 1851), Scottish international football player * John McGregor (footballer, born 1900) (1900–1993), English football player * John McGrego ...

– Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food *

George Younger George Kenneth Hotson Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, Baron Younger of Prestwick, (22 September 1931 – 26 January 2003), was a British Conservative Party politician and banker. Early life and career Younger's forebear, George Younger ...

– Secretary of State for Defence * Kenneth Baker – Secretary of State for Education and Science * Norman Fowler –

Secretary of State for Employment The Secretary of State for Employment was a position in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. In 1995 it was merged with Secretary of State for Education to make the Secretary of State for Education and Employment. In 2001 the employment functions w ...

* Cecil Parkinson – Secretary of State for Energy * Nicholas Ridley – Secretary of State for the Environment * John Moore – Secretary of State for Health * The Lord Young of Graffham –

Secretary of State for Trade and Industry The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...

and

President of the Board of Trade The president of the Board of Trade is head of the Board of Trade. This is a committee of the His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Privy Council of the United Kingdom, first established as a temporary committee of inquiry in the 17th centu ...

* Kenneth Clarke – Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster * Tom King –

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

* Malcolm Rifkind –

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...

* Paul Channon –

Secretary of State for Transport The Secretary of State for Transport, also referred to as the transport secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the policies of the Department for Transport. The incumbent i ...

* Peter Walker – Secretary of State for Wales * David Waddington – Chief Whip of the House of Commons and Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury *Sir Patrick Mayhew – Attorney General for England and Wales

Changes

*October 1987

Lord Mackay of Clashfern James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern, (born 2 July 1927) is a British advocate. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He is a former active member of the House of Lor ...

succeeds Lord Havers as Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. *January 1988Viscount Whitelaw retires and is succeeded by John Wakeham as Lord President of the Council.

Lord Belstead John Julian Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead, Baron Ganzoni, (30 September 1932 – 3 December 2005) was a Conservative Party (UK), British Conservative politician and peerage, peer who served as Leader of the House of Lords under Margaret Thatcher ...

succeeds Wakeham as Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal.

succeeds Viscount Whitelaw as Leader of the House of Lords. *July 1988 Department of Health and Social Security broken up into component parts: **John Moore continues on as Secretary of State for Social Security. ** Kenneth Clarke becomes Secretary of State for Health. Tony Newton succeeds Clarke as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

July 1989 to November 1990

– Prime Minister *Sir Geoffrey Howe – Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the House of Commons and

* The Lord Mackay of Clashfern –

* The Lord Belstead – Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal * Nigel Lawson –

* Norman Lamont –

– Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs * Douglas Hurd – Secretary of State for the Home Department * John Gummer – Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food * Tom King – Secretary of State for Defence *

– Secretary of State for Education and Science * Norman Fowler –

* John Wakeham – Secretary of State for Energy *

Chris Patten Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes, (; born 12 May 1944) is a British politician who was the 28th and last Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997 and Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1992. He was made a life pe ...

– Secretary of State for the Environment * Kenneth Clarke – Secretary of State for Health * Kenneth Baker – Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster * Peter Brooke –

* Malcolm Rifkind –

* Tony Newton –

Secretary of State for Social Security The secretary of state for work and pensions, also referred to as the work and pensions secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Work and P ...

* Nicholas Ridley –

and

* Cecil Parkinson –

* Peter Walker – Secretary of State for Wales

Changes

*October 1989 **

succeeds Nigel Lawson as Chancellor of the Exchequer. ** Douglas Hurd succeeds John Major as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. ** David Waddington succeeds Douglas Hurd as Secretary of State for the Home Department. ** Tim Renton succeeds David Waddington as Chief Whip. *January 1990Norman Fowler resigns as Secretary of State for Employment and is succeeded by

Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posi ...

. *May 1990Peter Walker resigns as Secretary of State for Wales, having announced his intention in March. David Hunt succeeds him. *July 1990Nicholas Ridley resigns as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. Peter Lilley succeeds him. *November 1990At the start of the month, Geoffrey Howe resigns and the title of Deputy Prime Minister is not reallocated.

succeeds him as Lord President of the Council and is in turn succeeded by Kenneth Clarke as Secretary of State for Education and Science, who is succeeded by William Waldegrave as Secretary of State for Health.

List of ministers

Members of the Cabinet are in bold face.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thatcher 3 Government 1980s in the United Kingdom 1987 establishments in the United Kingdom 1990 disestablishments in the United Kingdom 1990s in the United Kingdom Ministry 3 Ministries of Elizabeth II British ministries Cabinets established in 1987 Cabinets disestablished in 1990 pl:Pierwszy rząd Margaret Thatcher pl:Drugi rząd Margaret Thatcher