' ,- ' THE Ll\TER .POLIT,ICAL CAREER OF' R. A. BUTLER 1!9.5l-19M' by NICHOLAS ADAM PATCH A thesj)s submitted' .to the !University: .of Plymouth i!h. 1partia1 fulfil!men't for the ,degree of DOCTOR .OF PHILOSOPHY Schooili of Humanities and Cultu·ral! !~Cnter,preta:tion Faculty of Arts ·and Educati!on June 1998' Nicholas Adam Patch The Later Political Career of~~ Butler 1951-1964 Abstract R. A. Butler was one of the most influential and yet enigmatic of twentieth century politicians. He did more than anyone to stimulate the revival of post-war Conservatism, which led to three consecutive general election victories. He was a powerful figure in all Conservative Cabinets from 1951 to 1964, serving in each of the three main offices of state, and he nearly became Prime Minister twice. This thesis seeks to challenge the commonly held belief that the post-war Conservative policies developed by Butler represented an acceptance of the mixed-economy welfare­ state, as established by the Labour Government between 1945 and 1951. The weakness of the Conservatives' electoral position had led Butler to accept the need for state intervention in the economy and social policy in the late 1940s. However, in the various positions occupied by Butler after 1951, he pursued a distinctive course in economic and social policy. He sought to reclaim a far greater role for private enterprise, individual initiative and responsiblity; the traditional themes of Tory philosophy. This involved the creation of a free-enterprise economy and an 'opportunity' as opposed to a 'welfare' state. Butler's reputation for ambiguity, evasiveness and indecision obscured this political achievement at the time - playing a part in his failure to gain the Party leadership - and his record has not been recognised by biographers and historians subsequently. List of Contents List of Contents i Abbreviations iii Acknowledgements iv Author's Declaration v Introduction 1 Notes for Introduction 26 1. 'Setting the People Free' Butler as Chancellor of the Exchequer, 1951-1954 28 Introduction 28 The ROBOT plan 32 The battle to develop a distinctive Tory social policy 47 Industrial relations: the perils of free wage bargaining 58 Grass-roots discontent 60 Climbing the 'greasy pole' 63 Conclusion 67 Notes for Chapter 1 71 2. 'United for Peace and Proqress'? Butler under Eden, 1955-1957 78 Introduction 78 Butler's final year as Chancellor 79 Butler's removal from the Treasury 93 The Conservatives' 'thinker without portfolio':1956 97 Butler's role in foreign policy under Eden 109 Conclusion 121 Notes for Chapter 2 124 3. 'Onwward in Freedom' Butler under Macmillan, 1957-1959 131 Introduction 1 31 Butler as Home Secretary 135 Butler's role in policy making 145 Cabinet crisis: the Chancellor's resignation 1 50 Recovery 1 58 Conclusion 1 61 Notes for Chapter 3 1 64 i 4. 'Tomorrow Our Responsibility' Butler under Macmillan, 1959-1962 169 Introduction 169 The Conservative electoral dilemma 171 Welfare versus tax cuts 176 'The middle-class revolt' 182 'From three hats to one' 185 'The great reappraisal' 1 91 'The night of the long knives' 195 Conclusion 201 Notes for Chapter 4 203 5. The Tory Leadership Crisis, 1962-1964 209 Introduction 209 Europe and Empire 210 The Profumo scandal 216 The waiting game: June-October 1963 219 Complacency at Blackpool 223 'Customary processes' 227 Foreign Secretary under Home 234 Butler and the 1964 general election 243 Conclusion 247 Notes for Chapter 5 251 Conclusion 258 Notes for Conclusion 267 Bibliography 268 ii Abbreviations The following abbreviations appear in the text and notes: CAB Cabinet Papers and Memoranda cc Cabinet Conclusions cco Conservative Central Office CPA Conservative Party Archive CPC Conservative Political Centre CRD Conservative Research Department DSND Papers of Lord Duncan-Sandys ED Ministry of Education Files EEC European Economic Community GNP Gross National Product HAIS Private Papers of Lord Hailes KLMR Private Papers of Lord Kilmuir MHLG Ministry of Housing and Local Government Files NEDC National Economic Development Council NHS National Health Service NIC National Incomes Commission PPS Parliamentary Private Secretary PREM Papers of the Prime Minister's Office PRO Public Record Office PSG Policy Studies Group RAB Private Papers of R. A. Butler RPM Resale Price Maintenance se Steering Committee SELO Private Papers of Lord Selwyn-Lloyd SWIN Private Papers of Lord Swinton T Treasury Files TPC Taxation Policy Committee iii Acknowledgements This thesis is the culmination of a long-term interest in the Conservative Party and post-war British politics. It would not have been possible without the aid of a part-time Research Assistantship from the University of Plymouth, which enabled me to carry out work at the institutions listed below. I am very grateful to my Director of Studies, Dr Kevin Jefferys, for his support and advice and also to my additional supervisors, Dr Nick Smart, and Dr Stuart Ball at the University of Leicester, for their helpful and constructive comments on successive drafts of the thesis. I would also like to express my thanks to the library and archive staff of the following institutions for their co­ operation and assistance: the Wren Library, Trinity College, Cambridge; Churchill College Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge; the Modern Papers Reading Room in the Bodleian Library, Oxford; the Public Record Office, Kew; the National Newspaper Library, Colindale; the Heslop Room in the University of Birmingham Library; the University of Leeds Library. Finally, a very big thank you to my parents who have given me such wonderful support and encouragement throughout the duration of this project. iv Author's Declaration At no time during the registration for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy has the author been registered for any other University award. This study was financed with the aid of a part-time Research Assistantship from the Faculty of Arts and Education, University of Plymouth. Relevant historical research courses, conferences and seminars were attended at the Institute of Historical Research and at the Institute of Contemprary British History in London. S1gned. ....................~<d.~ rohL- . Date ••• -~~~. J.~. .\~"Y\> .. V Introduction Richard Austen Butler, popularly known as RAB throughout his career, was one of the most eminent British statesmen of the mid-twentieth century. A junior Minister between 1932 and 1945, he was the key figure in the revival of post-war Conservatism, playing a major part in shaping Conservative policies which contributed to three successive general election victories. From 1951, when the Conservatives were returned to power, until 1964 Butler held every senior ministerial post including the Exchequer, the Home Office and the Foreign Office. On at least two occasions, in 1957 and 1963, he had a chance to become Prime Minister. This thesis provides a reappraisal of this most important period in his career, in the history of the Conservative Party and in post-war British politics. There have been a number of biographies of Butler. Anthony Howard's RAB The Life of R. A. Butler, an authorised biography, provides a graphic insight into the high political context of Butler's entire life. It is particularly strong on the enigmatic aspects of his personality. D. R. Thorpe's chapter on Butler in The Uncrowned Prime Ministers concentrates on the reasons why he did not become Prime Minister. Patrick Cosgrave in R. A. Butler: An English Life gives a brief but perceptive analysis of Butler's character. Butler's own autobiography, The Art of the Possible, which earned him widespread praise and respect for its apparent self-revelation and criticism in contrast to many self-serving memoirs, was in fact 1 l_ - largely ghost-written.(1) However, these works cover Butler's entire career and are therefore not able to provide a detailed analysis of the period from 1951 to 1964, when his career was at its height. They have not been able to take advantage of newly released Government papers at the Public Record Office, Kew, the Conservative Party Archive at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and the private papers of other leading politicians of the time. Most importantly, the literature on Butler accepts the widely held view of him as the leading Conservative advocate of the 'post-war consensus'. Given the above it would seem relatively straightforward to reassess Butler as a consensus politician - to argue that he was either more or less a politician of that sort. However, such uncomplicated revisionism comes up against a major problem. The term 'consensus', which his career has been measured against, is itself hotly contested and a moving target. The long-running 'consensus debate' provides an inescapable context for any reconsideration of Butler's later career, and so must be considered in some detail. Broadly speaking, two schools of thought have developed over the past twenty years. Paul Addison in his 1975 book, The Road to 1945, was the first to achieve prominence by explaining post-war politics in terms of a war-generated elite consensus consisting of a broad commitment by all parties to a mixed economy of state owned and private enterprise, full employment, and a state health, social security and 2 education system (the welfare state). He believed that the Labour Government of 1945-51 'completed and consolidated' the proposals of the coalition, which were positively embraced by the Conservative Party in government after 1951. The war had inaugurated a period of closer party