Political Currency EMQs: Could David Miliband have defeated the Tories in 2015?
Sep 1, 2025
What if key moments in British politics shifted direction? The hosts analyze whether Margaret Thatcher could have clinched the 1992 election and how that might have changed her legacy. They dive into Tony Blair's potential tenure during the financial crisis and the implications of the UK joining the euro. Personal anecdotes about the Miliband brothers reveal how leadership contests shaped Labour's fate. These intriguing hypotheticals invite listeners to reconsider the course of recent history and its impact on British politics.
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Thatcher's Survival Wouldn't Guarantee Victory
- Thatcher's near-defeat in 1990 made her continuation politically unstable despite winning the MPs' ballot.
- That instability, plus the poll tax and recession, likely meant she would have lost a 1992 general election.
Image Of Change Beat Continuity For Voters
- John Major embodied change after Thatcher by presenting himself as a different, modest figure.
- That 'change' image helped the Conservatives win 1992 despite economic worries and the poll tax fallout.
Inside The Blair–Brown Transition
- Ed Ball recounts the 2007 Blair-Brown transition debates and the 'Curry House Plot' that forced Tony Blair's hand.
- He says Gordon Brown did not orchestrate a coup but found out events were unfolding and wanted a smooth transition.