On 18 Aug MT received some striking advice on this question from Charles Douglas-Home (then foreign editor of The Times), reporting private chats with Whitelaw, Prior, Pym, "J.N." The centrepiece was a purge of the wets, Gilmour, Soames and Carlisle leaving the government, Prior being shifted to Northern Ireland, Thorneycroft leaving the party chairmanship. He went in early, by a back door, and was urged by the Prime Minister, in 45 minutes of discussion, to accept the Northern Ireland post. And when the time came to pay the bill - they had scarpered (couldn't be found)". In her highly successful reshuffle of September 1981, Margaret Thatcher got rid of Lord Soames. She is the first woman leader of the House of Lords. (Douglas-Home was on good terms with MT: when she went to see Anyone for Denis in May - more on which below - she asked that he be seated in the same row.) Prior was plainly treated with special care: she gave him time to consult colleagues and family before making a final decision; in all they met three times during the day, including an evening drink. “You have to promote on merit,” Margaret Thatcher told the BBC’s Jenni Murray during an interview for Woman’s Hour in 1993, after she was challenged on the lack of women in her cabinet. Mr Prior's main concern, expressed often and publicly, was that by going to Belfast he would be removed from the main area of economic discussion in the Government. He doesn’t think she will follow through on Howe. Other Cabinet members' rows are highlighted in yellow. That is what the Government is now doing." Concessions on fuel were announced during the Finance Bill. Mr Prior's wife, Jane, said last night: "Jim is obviously sad to leave his old job. Later some of the wets kicked themselves for not having resigned over the budget, Gilmour particularly. Heseltine and Tebbit were much talked of as possible replacements, so that Parkinson's appointment was a genuine surprise. "Every prime minister has to reshuffle from time to time. At a stroke, this reshaped and reinvigorated her government, despatched deadbeats and disloyal colleagues while promoting talented supporters. MT's notes on the batting order include a reference to the hunger strikes. Predictably perhaps Ian Gilmour spoke out publicly against his dismissal, in Downing Street itself where he commented memorably: "It does no harm to throw the occasional man overboard, but it does not do much good if you are steering full speed ahead for the rocks. Whether even now she commands a majority in her own Cabinet remains in doubt. As it is, she has avoided a potentially disastrous gulf between the left and right wings of the party. The letter 'E' at the top of the "Batting Order" probably refers to a concession she made to Prior, that in going to Northern Ireland he could stay on the cabinet's Economic Strategy committee, which was known as E Committee. In 1981 Margaret Thatcher purged her cabinet of the so-called “wets” who objected to her plans to cut public spending. But in November 1981 Mrs Thatcher faced a rebellion of backbench MPs too. Only 24 per cent thought Howe was going a good job, well below the previous low, achieved by Selwyn Lloyd in 1961, the year before his removal in the "Night of the Long Knives". “That’s right, Mrs. Thatcher, sack them. For three or four hours, Mr Prior deliberated. She seems to have at least considered the possibility of a conciliatory gesture: the Whitmore note suggests that she contemplated offering him the Arts portfolio - which he already held and much enjoyed - outside the Cabinet, but if the offer was made, it was rejected. <, Lord Hailsham of St Marylebone: Lord Chancellor, Lord Carrington: Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Sir Geoffrey Howe: Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Keith Joseph: Secretary of State for Education and Science, Mr Francis Pym: Lord President of the Council, Leader of the Commons, Mr James Prior: Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Mr John Nott: Secretary of State for Defence, Mr Peter Walker: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Mr Michael Heseltine: Secretary of State for the Environment, Mr George Younger: Secretary of State for Scotland, Mr Nicholas Edwards: Secretary of State for Wales, Mr Patrick Jenkin: Secretary of State for Industry, Mr John Biffen: Secretary of State for Trade, Mr David Howell: Secretary of State for Transport, Mr Norman Fowler: Secretary of State for Social Services, Mr Leon Brittan: Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Lady Young: Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Leader of the House of Lords, Mr Nigel Lawson: Secretary of State for Energy, Mr Norman Tebbit: Secretary of State for Employment, Mr Cecil Parkinson: Paymaster General and Chairman of the Conservative Party (will attend Cabinet meetings). The January 1981 Cabinet reshuffle was Thatcher’s only attempt at putting one of her inner circle in a position to try and exert control over the MOD. The 1981 budget statement was one of the most contentious the British Treasury had ever submitted. But if there was any prospect of a gradual move this autumn towards reflationary policies, that prospect - in the view of those who would like this - has been pushed back for several months at least by the Prime Minister's firm self-assertion. Unavoidably perhaps he was compensated by being given a lead role in the presentation of government policy, a move strongly endorsed by the party chairman, Lord Thorneycroft, and with the backing of MT's trusted PPS, Ian Gow. In 1981 unemployment had risen to levels not seen since the 1930s and public finances foundered in their worst state since 1945. His predecessor there, Sir Keith Joseph, becomes Secretary of State for Education and Science. We are releasing this year a planning note for the reshuffle by MT's Principal Private Secretary, Clive Whitmore, which sketches two scenarios, turning on the question of whether Pym would be moved or not - presumably the most difficult question. John Biffen was moved to Trade from the Chief Secretaryship (where his semi-public criticism of economic policy had cost him the confidence of the Chancellor, as shown by papers released here last year). All Rights Reserved. In 1981 when her government announced that 23 pits were to close it resulted in a national strike threat by the miners and several unofficial stoppages. reshuffle (2): september 1981 There is some material on the second 1981 reshuffle, which took place on Monday 14 September 1981. A reshuffle to end the dissent and bring in fresh faces. Mrs Thatcher made the decision easier for him by offering him, from the outset, the retention of his seat on the Cabinet's main economic committee, the E Committee, something that Mr Atkins did not have. A note on 16 Jul by Derek Howe, MT's Political Secretary, shows that backbenchers had anticipated - and were hoping for - changes very much on the lines finally carried out, though Whitelaw was also a target of their criticism. 1981 was memorable for two significant shuffles of the cabinet pack as MT visibly struggled to maintain control of government and party, the second proving a decisive moment. Off she went after that, though not as fast as the Coalition in terms of radical evangelism. Why? He has caught Mrs Thatcher's eye as an active Minister of State at the Department of Trade, and replaces Lord Thorneycroft, aged 72, who wrote to the Prime Minister last month urging her to appoint a younger man. He consulted Mr William Whitelaw, the Home Secretary, Mr Michael Jopling, the chief whip, and other friends, and he consulted his wife and four children. But in November 1981 Mrs Thatcher faced a rebellion of backbench MPs too. Mrs Thatcher embarked on a sudden Cabinet reshuffle. Former Thatcher minister Lord Prior who was sidelined by Iron Lady in brutal 1981 ‘wets’ reshuffle dies Jim Prior was moved to Northern Ireland Secretary from … It is simply something different which he intends to go at with all his customary hard work and enthusiasm. The Prime Minister promised further discussion in the autumn. Who could she promote. They include a brief daily diary, in a week-to-a page A4 format volume, which appears to have been written reasonably close to events, sometimes daily, sometimes after a longer gap. Mr Lawson's resignation forced a cabinet reshuffle only four months after the Prime Minister had put a new team in place. Alan Walters became MT's No.10 economic adviser at the beginning of Jan 1981. It is a credible contemporary source. The batting order has MT seeing Gilmour first, then Atkins second, clearing the Northern Ireland Office for Prior. For one thing, as the Walters diary records (14 Spt), Prior's public rejection of the move had cost him the support of Willie Whitelaw, a key adviser in Thatcher reshuffles. Mrs Thatcher having observed Sir Ian Gilmour's response to dismissal may reflect that Mr Prior on the back benches would have had an even higher nuisance value. Within three hours of his departure, Mrs Thatcher … All were adamant that it was his duty to serve in Northern Ireland, and that he would not forgive himself if he failed to accept the challenge. Had he stayed at Defence, it is very unlikely Pym would have become Foreign Secretary during the Falklands War. His previous small office of Paymaster General goes to Mr Cecil Parkinson, the new chairman of the Conservative Party. Lady Young, who learnt her politics in local government in Oxford in the 1960s is a deputy chairman of the Conservative Party and a trusted associate of the Prime Minister. And in 1981, Margaret Thatcher purged her Cabinet of the dissenting “wets” and elevated like-minded allies such as Norman Tebbit. Prior had allowed it to be publicly known that he didn't want the job, but it is striking that there is no sign of a Plan B in case he refused, such as leaving Atkins in Belfast. Although the latter had emerged as a critic of economic policy, it seems likely he was expecting to leave anyway - at 72, he had been chairman for six years, and any successor would need to be in place well before the next election, due in 1983/84. Did not want to discuss budget" (22 Feb), "I tell Paddie [his wife] we must be ready to go". That MT was even thinking in terms of possibly removing the Chancellor - that her relationship with him had soured to this degree, that early - is a shock. This was a long-trailed event, perhaps too long: as early as 10 July Ingham warned MT that the lobby was "increasingly excited" at the prospect, and of course jockeying for position broke out, particularly for the party chairmanship which Thorneycroft was thought certain to be vacating. Their most prominent leader, Jim Prior, who was threatening to resign if he was moved from the Department of Employment, capitulated and was moved to the more onerous task of Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Gamble, 1981). Copyright © Margaret Thatcher Foundation 2021. He duly emerged as a rebel in the sharp arguments over economic policy during the autumn of 1981, deploring the lost Disraelian legacy of the party, as he saw it. In what must be her last big effort to build a Cabinet in tune with her economic thinking, the Prime Minister yesterday dropped three Cabinet ministers, including the hostile Sir Ian Gilmour, Lord Privy Seal, and promoted several ministers and back-benchers on whose support she has relied since becoming party leader in 1975. At the party conference MT paid him a warm tribute in her speech, after which he wrote her an equally warm letter of thanks. It was difficult to see the move as any other than a demotion for Pym, who stood well at that time in the Parliamentary Party. Mr Prior also secured the help of two valued colleagues. At some point later she wrote the following on the first page of the old draft: "Departed from the text in as much as I said something to the following effect. Papers released last year show him perhaps relying overmuch on that connection. Next page - Rebellion of the 'wets' & the SDP. At the end of March Lord Carrington wrote her an angry letter - described by MT's Principal Private Secretary as 'really very silly' - complaining that he had been let down by an Ingham briefing, contrasting this shabby treatment with his own restraint in having gone out of his way "to avoid seeing the press or of giving any indication about differences on the budget or anything else". Later in the month, he declined an invitation to meet her when she visited Cambridge, a sad little letter carefully brought to her notice. She takes on the same job, as Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, that she held from 1972-74. They were swiftly dubbed the ‘wets’, and rather than securing any changes in policy were effectively marginalised by a Cabinet reshuffle in September 1981. Photograph by John Mannine [caption to large photo; omitted]. Sir Ian, who had read in recent weeks enough inspired forecasts of his fate to write his resignation letter some weeks ago, said that his dismissal was perfectly natural and not unwelcome. He feels these might prove to be just the qualities that are needed to deal with Northern Ireland, let us hope so." But she has found room in it for three totally loyal colleagues, each of them in their way strong politicians, with a fourth devotee as party chairman. That neatly summed her view of the politics of it all. When he returned and told the Prime Minister that he would accept, it must have been a relief to them both. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, making a comprehensive shuffle of her Cabinet, served notice today that she is not contemplating any significant … The first came in the unusual month of January, giving it something of an emergency flavour. Mr Lawson, former Financial Secretary to the Treasury, becomes Secretary of State for Energy. Mr Tebbit said on ITN's News at Ten last night that Mrs Thatcher had not given him a brief to "get tough with the unions", but perhaps a fresh approach was needed. Released this year are the documents MT had in front of her when meeting ministers, the discreet "Batting order" on a slip of paper drawn up by Clive Whitmore (already referred to, image above) plus detailed notes of the changes on sheets of A4. In one of the most controversial Cabinet reshuffles of modern times, in 1981… January 1981 A reshuffle sees a doubling of the number of Jews in the Cabinet. Relations became very strained around the time of the 1981 budget leading to a reshuffle in which Thatcher brought in more of her natural supporters, such as Nigel Lawson, Norman Tebbit and Cecil Parkinson, dismissing or marginalising some of the wets. ", "After such a long stint in one area of policy it is obviously a wrench to leave it, but this is a new challenge and I am delighted to have such a strong and experienced ministerial team with me.". Published polling was surveyed by Central Office alongside their private surveys. Mr Lawson, as a member of the Treasury team since May, 1979, has been regarded as the most convinced monetarist in the Government. The centrepiece was a purge of the wets, Gilmour, Soames and Carlisle leaving the government, Prior being shifted to Northern Ireland, Thorneycroft leaving the … He urged particularly that Pym be moved from leadership of the House of Commons, "very important". The indignity of it all was emphasised by a published exchange of letters between them after his resignation when he complained that she had accused him in a TV interview of leaking and linked that to his dismissal; MT denied the interpretation, but the impression lingered. Sack the lot of them !” This would be the episode whose climactic scene is . She persuaded him that the job was vitally important and that she wanted a new man there to take, in time, a new political initiative. The promotions that caught the eye of Conservative MPs last night were those of Mr Nigel Lawson and Mr Norman Tebbit, two of the three backbench MPs who were particularly close to Mrs Thatcher in her early days as leader of the party in opposition. On the other hand, he advised against a big reshuffle, urging that she face down ministers in one-to-one meetings, a series of summonses to the headmistress's office, an improbable tactic that worked none too well when tried on a later occasion. This would be the episode whose climactic scene is . The budget of that year was also a crucial one, long remembered with or without admiration, according to taste. Many doubting ministers had been sacked in a September cabinet reshuffle, the so-called "purge of the Wets". "J.P. has been taken to task by Whitelaw for being disloyal and holding a pistol to PM's head. The other two new members of the Cabinet, apart from Mr Tebbit, are Lady Young, who takes Lord Soames's place as Leader of the House of Lords and Minister in charge of the Civil Service, and Mr Nigel Lawson. His place at the Treasury is taken by Mr Nicholas Ridley who, like Mr Lawson, is a convinced monetarist. Copyright © Margaret Thatcher Foundation 2021. The 'no hope' budget delivered by Chancellor Geoffrey Howe in March marked the beginning of a six-month period which witnessed pressures in Northern Ireland, hunger strikes, urban riots and unprecedented unrest within the Conservative Party. It does no harm to throw the occasional man overboard, but it does not do much good if you are steering full speed ahead for the rocks. This caused Thatcher to back down and bide her time. And later he notes: "She is very uncertain of herself. Other ministers fumed silently, or almost silently. Mr Prior agreed to serve as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland after being dissuaded by his family and friends from leaving office. A clash between the Church of England and Downing Street over proposals to exclude the Prime Minister from the unveiling of the Falklands Memorial in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral. Mr Norman Tebbit will be the man to introduce a further Bill, in the next session of Parliament, to curb the powers of the trade unions, and as such will be closely watched. The very first entry, describing his first meeting with MT in the job, begins: "What should she do about Geoffrey. Lord Soames's brief letter hid his disappointment. Sir Ian Gilmour, whose outspokenness raises the question of how he felt able to remain In office for so long, said last night on BBC radio that there were still many people in the Cabinet who thought the same as he did. This was my overriding consideration when the Prime Min- ister asked me to assume responsibility for Northern Ireland. She pulled back at the eleventh hour from some of the middle-order changes - e.g., not sacking Sally Oppenheim, leaving the Welsh Office team in place - but otherwise everything went as intended. And on BBC television's Newsnight Mr Tebbit, a former airline pilot, said he was "a hawk, but not a kamikaze". Frightened of calls for relaxation or sops to the wets. At the same time, the weightiest Cabinet critic of Treasury. Pym also got in on the act, "rather deftly" briefing the lobby in favour of an annual pre-budget cabinet discussion of economic policy, also carefully noted by Ingham. If any Conservative is more convinced, it is probably Mr Jock Bruce-Gardyne, whose appointment as Minister of State at the Treasury is one of five or six further moves to be announced. The image below comes from the September 1981 reshuffle, headed by MT "Batting order", a rare but apt use of a cricketing analogy on her part: note the tight timings, which mattered a good deal, because it proved surprisingly difficult to manage the simple business of getting people in and out the famous front door at No.10 with minimum risk of, or opportunity for, embarrassment. Walters told MT of the seminar at which the Swiss economist, Jurg Niehans, argued that British monetary policy was too tight and that £M3 was the wrong monetary aggregate to target, "MT very defensive: NO ONE must know about it - especially Bank of England. It was wrong, said W.W." And the offer of Northern Ireland was a clever one. Pym was promoted, in a small way, swapping the Chancellorship of the Duchy of Lancaster for the more senior Lord Presidency of the Council, though in substance his job remained the same, Leadership of the House of Commons and coordinator of presentation. His papers are now at Churchill and are being released in tandem with the Thatcher papers. But like John Hoskyns, at this stage, Walters was something of a sceptic about MT. Mr Parkinson is the one complete surprise. Some 73 per cent thought the budget unfair, 22 per cent fair (previous low 33 per cent for 1961). Report on the first cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher since winning the UK General Election in 05/79. In truth she seems to have been confident he would take it. Blair’s 2006 reshuffle. In the circumstances of 1981 it was a significant post, and also one difficult to turn down without seeming to run away from responsibility. a Margaret Thatcher cabinet reshuffle in 1981. Four other Cabinet ministers were switched between posts; in all, 10 of the 22 Cabinet places were affected. Cabinet reshuffle in full: List of ministers sacked, backed and cracked in shake-up Boris Johnson has taken the chop to his top team with Esther McVey, Julian Smith and Andrea Leadsom among those out. July 1981 Mrs Thatcher attacks Mr Begin and says Israel’s response to … [i.e., since her visit to the Laings' home in Dunphail & to HMQ at Balmoral, 4-6 Spt] I hate "doing" reshuffles but alas they have to be done. A significant number of Cabinet ministers expressed their disagreement. Changes include sacking of Leader of the House Norman St John-Stevas and replacement by Francis Pym. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher fired three Cabinet critics of her Conservative government's hard-line monetarist economic policies Monday. MT genuined disliked causing personal pain and certainly understood that Stevas would take it badly. policies, Mr Prior, by at first defying Mrs Thatcher to move him and then deciding to fall in with her plans, must for the moment have become a diminished force. Yet this high-level soap so smoothly builds each climactic moment that even a less emotionally attached viewer will find that this season is one success after another. It must have been an exhausting day all round. There is some material on the second 1981 reshuffle, which took place on Monday 14 September 1981. In his heart I think Jim really rather wanted to try the Northern Ireland task and like a true patriot he has risen to the occasion and I understand has received a very warm welcome". To hold two reshuffles in a single year was itself a symptom of party divisions. . Among other changes, Mr David Howell is moved from Energy to be Secretary of State for Transport, a downward move although not so represented, and Mr Norman Fowler moves up from Transport to be Secretary of State for Health and Social Security. Mr Norman Tebbit was promoted to the sensitive post of Secretary of State for Employ- ment, which Mr James Prior was so reluctant to leave. "Unfortunately I shall be away as I am taking a brief rest after these rather traumatic events in order to recover and be able to do my work" [THCR 6/2/4/17 f3]. In a statement last night, Mr Prior said: "I have always regarded it as my first duty in Politics to serve my country. Mrs Peggy Fenner, MP for Rochester and Chatham, is brought into the Administration for the first time having, like Mr Nicholas Scott, last held office under Mr Edward Heath. In episode 2, Thatcher’s cabinet balks at her proposed “wholesale configuration of the state and its institutions”, telling her she is being “too rash, too reckless… Indeed, the blow to pride would have made it very hard to accept. The files contain fascinating documents planning the moves, which were always orchestrated by a senior official despite their highly political character. Norman St John-Stevas was dropped altogether, to be replaced by Francis Pym, John Nott succeeding him at Defence. Thatcher battled cabinet 'wets' over Howe austerity plans National Archives releases papers detailing row over 1981-1982 spending round that ended with purge of opponents in reshuffle … Unlike Lord Thorneycroft, Mr Parkinson, as a senior Minister, will attend all Cabinet meetings and receive all Cabinet papers, without formally being a member of the Cabinet. Mr Prior also secured the help of two valued colleagues. The big question, of course, was whether Prior would agree to move to Northern Ireland? The Whitmore notes suggest that if Pym hadn't been moved, Nott would have stayed put and Biffen would have become leader of the House of Commons, a job he occupied later. Lord Soames, former Lord President of the Council, after an exceptionally long, varied, and distinguished political career, resigned at Mrs Margaret Thatcher's request, and so did Mr Mark Carlisle, Secretary of State for Education and Science, who goes to the back benches. That is what the Government is now doing.". So there are. Decision made easier by Mrs Thatcher. At this stage they contented themselves with briefing the press about cabinet divisions, a fact reported to MT by Bernard Ingham ("Some very clear briefing is being given"; six cabinet ministers said to be opposed, but only three actually spoke against in cabinet). The character of the reshuffle was clear early on: Ian Gow told Alan Clark on 21 July to expect a "major reshuffle in the autumn and that The Lady would be bringing in many of her friends" (p249 Into Politics). Later, on 23 Feb, Walters recounts her warning Howe "that he must get the PSBR down or 'you are for the chop'". Office Name Date Prime Minister … Boris Johnson Cabinet reshuffle: Four ministers under spotlight when PM orders shake-up BORIS JOHNSON has been tipped to reshuffle his Cabinet in … a Margaret Thatcher cabinet reshuffle in 1981. Sir Ian Gilmour published a blistering statement, saying he had been dismissed because he disagreed with the Government's economic policy, and making plain his intention to campaign in the party and the country for a change of course. One year after winning an historic third term in power, Tony Blair underwent … . MT defended the budget in an improvised speech the day after (11 Mar), discarding her previously prepared text. ", "He is a man with great conciliatory abilities and persuasive powers as well as boundless energy and broad shoulders. Judith Dawson reports back on possible ministerial changes in Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s cabinet reshuffle, notably the move of Employment Secretary James Prior to Northern Ireland, following his non-confrontational approach to the trade unions and despite his threat to resign. Mr Francis Pym, who remains Leader of the House of Commons, is given the new and more senior title of Lord President of the Council. Mr Humphrey Atkins moves from the Northern Ireland Office to take Sir Ian Gilmour's post of Lord Privy Seal, the number two position at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. . It was described by some as a humiliating ‘U-turn’, however NUM vice-president Mick McGahey described it as “more a body swerve”. They headlined a Gallup poll for the Daily Telegraph, published 19 March, which showed the budget to be the most unpopular for 30 years. "He does not regard it as promotion or demotion. Lord Gowrie, his Minister of State at the Department of Employment, goes with him; and Mr Nicholas Scott, a Liberal Conservative, who held junior office at the Department of Employment briefly in 1974, also goes to the Northern Ireland Office as Under-Secretary of State. There are signs that he read through the diary from time to time and made additions to existing entries, but there is no attempt at concealing that these are later thoughts - he uses different pens. He had been one of MT's junior ministers at Education under Heath and had felt the experience gave him some standing with her, if not exactly personal or political closeness. Mrs Thatcher made the decision easier for him by offering him, from the outset, the retention of his seat on the Cabinet's main economic committee, the E Committee, something that Mr Atkins did not have. 1981 – July 23: Thatcher confronted in a Cabinet meeting by a major rebellion by ‘wets’ opposed to her economic policies, led by Michael Heseltine. A very full file on the mechanics of the Cabinet reshuffle of September 1985. Norman St John-Stevas was deeply hurt by his dismissal, as his obituaries the week of this release reminded us. No one" (6 Jan). Writing with some satisfaction to her Scottish friends, the Laings, three days later, MT said: "As you know, I have had a busy and difficult time since then. term cronies of the Prime Minister. 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'S appointment was a clever one the same job, as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury, becomes Secretary State. Not regard it as thatcher cabinet reshuffle 1981 or demotion Lawson, former Financial Secretary the... Own Cabinet remains in doubt it all overriding consideration when the Prime Minister that he would,. '' ( 8 Jan ) rid of Lord Soames powers as well as boundless Energy and broad shoulders at... He sees Northern Ireland as an immense challenge dissenting “ wets ” elevated! It is, she has avoided thatcher cabinet reshuffle 1981 potentially disastrous gulf between the left right! ’ s 2006 reshuffle fair ( previous low 33 per cent thought the budget unfair, 22 per cent the! At Churchill and are being released in tandem with the Thatcher papers ’ t think will... To assume responsibility for Northern Ireland after being dissuaded by his dismissal, as Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry Agriculture!