Heath, Edward (1916–2005)

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HEATH, EDWARD (1916–2005)

British Conservative Party politician, member of Parliament, and prime minister (1970–1974).

Edward Richard George Heath, the son of a carpenter who won an organ scholarship to Balliol College at the University of Oxford, rose rapidly though the post–World War II Conservative Party. Elected to the House of Commons in 1950, he made his first speech advocating British involvement in European integration. This was to become the key theme of his political career and was crowned by Britain's admission to the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973.

From 1952 Heath served in the Whips' Office, with a brief spell as minister of labour (1959–1960). As Lord Privy Seal (1960–1963), he had special responsibility for attempting to negotiate Britain's first application to join the EEC. This ended in failure when the French president, Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970), vetoed the application in 1963, but Heath emerged with his reputation enhanced. The Conservatives lost the 1964 general election and Sir Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home (1903–1995) agreed to resign as leader. Heath became the new leader in 1965 after becoming the first Conservative leader to be elected by a ballot of Conservative MPs. Aged forty-nine, Heath was the youngest leader of the party for over a century. During his period as leader of the opposition (1965–1970), he concentrated the party's energies on policy making, in preparation for a return to government. His leadership was tested in April 1968 by Enoch Powell (1912–1998). Powell made an anti-immigration speech in Birmingham that provoked outrage, and Heath fired him from the shadow cabinet.

Heath became prime minister in June 1970. After thirty-one days in office, the unexpected death of Ian Macleod (1913–1970), the chancellor of the exchequer, proved a massive blow. The policies of his replacement, Anthony Barber (b. 1920), proved controversial. Barber's "dash for growth" initially provoked economic prosperity, but rising inflation and record levels of unemployment soon followed. The government's rescue of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, previously perceived a "lame duck," was dubbed a U-turn by critics. Heath's imposition of an incomes policy in an attempt to deal with inflation led to a national coal strike in 1972. When Heath responded by declaring a state of emergency, waves of strikes broke out in the coal, power, and transport industries. The ensuing power shortages led to the imposition of a three-day week in December. During Heath's premiership, Northern Ireland reemerged as a major problem for the British. The first British solider was killed in Belfast in February 1971, obliging Heath to introduce internment (August 1971). Matters worsened when the army killed thirteen during the Londonderry "Bloody Sunday" riots in January 1972, and eventually in March the government was obliged to reimpose direct Westminster rule for the province. Heath's major accomplishment was to bring the United Kingdom into the European Community (later the European Union).

In February 1974, Heath called a general election to let the country decide "Who Governs Britain." His party lost, and he resigned as prime minister in March after failing to win the support of the Liberal Party to form a minority government. The Conservatives were defeated again in the October 1974 election. One year later Heath lost his post as party leader to Margaret Thatcher (b. 1925). Heath retained his seat in Parliament but held no posts in subsequent Conservative cabinets. He remained one of the chief spokespersons for the pro-Europeans within the Conservative Party. He stood down as a MP in 2001. Heath died on 17 July 2005.

Outside of politics, Heath pursued his passions for music and sailing. He led the British sailing team to victory in the 1971 Admiral's Cup and won the famous Sydney-Hobart race, aboard his yacht Morning Cloud, in January 1970. However, sailing was not without personal tragedy. In September 1974, Morning Cloud III sank with the loss of two lives, including Heath's twenty-two-year-old godson. It undoubtedly affected Heath's performance in the general election two weeks later.

Heath's premiership has been cast by Thatcherites as a disaster. His U-turns implied weakness, and ultimately failure. This analysis presumes that the January 1970 Selsdon Park shadow cabinet conference was a blueprint for monetarism and market economics. Heath never believed in laissez-faire, but was a traditional Tory who saw the state as an essential deliverer of economic and social policy and sensed the need for radical change. Much of Heath's post-1975 political life was motivated by personal antipathy toward Thatcherism.