To wonder who is more hated, Blair or Thatcher?

[WetAugust]

Seems that Blair is planning a return to UK politics.

Blair did everything with that grich like creepy smile though.

grinch

Blair for me.

Blair misguided????!!! What an apologist statement!

I keep thinking with all the fuss about the friendship between Rebekah Brooks and DC: "BUT BLAIR IS MURDOCH'S KIDS' GODFATHER!!!"

Blair is seriously evil IMO. He only cares about HIM.

He used Labour. I think he is the worse of the two, by far.

Blair for me too.

I think it is definitely Tony Blair. Not by me I hesitate to add, but he does seem to be to blame for er, well, just about everything these days. Forget that he made Labour electable again, achieved Peace in Northern Ireland where so many others had failed and showed great leadership on many occasions including over Diana's death and around 9/11. I also (very controversially) think he acted extremely decisively over Iraq but the fallout will always haunt him despite the fact that chemical weapons (including Anthrax) as well as long range warheads were found there by Hans Blix (see Blix's own report below) www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/feb/14/iraq.unitednations1

It was only when he returned to check that they had been properly disposed of that they couldn't be found i.e they had "disappeared". Which is a different matter entirely. I don't think many of the British public realise this. (Dons protective clothing before hail of abuse).

Thatcher, by a country mile.

Blair.

thatcher stuck to her policies no matter what you may think of them.

Blair lied and lied again. Promised the electorate one thing and did the other.

1989 housing act. Written by Waldegrave for Thatcher. Advocated wholesale removal of estates from councils.
Capital Receipts: 28%.
Thatcher.

I think they both have a place waiting for them in an exceptionally hot corner of hell.

Blair, with a passion.

I loathe the man but not as much as his wife who I'd dearly love to punch in the face the only person on the planet who makes me feel this way very very hard!

Blair - and not just because he was a man. for the same reasons as Nancy66. Dont like Kinnock either - the two always seemed very similar to me only one of them had the power and the other didnt. It is 21 years since thatcher went - a lifetime for some on MN - so perhaps it is an age thing.

Tricky one this. But to correct a few points:

Right to Buy was a policy dreamed up by Labour (appreciate implemented by Thatcher)
Thatcher never simply said "there's no such thing as society". She in fact said: "They're casting their problem on society. And, you know, there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first. It's our duty to look after ourselves and then, also to look after our neighbour. People have got the entitlements too much in mind, without the obligations, because there is no such thing as an entitlement unless someone has first met an obligation"

People also seem to forget the 1970's: Inflation up to 20% at its peak. Regular electricity blackouts across the country, IMF bail out etc, which was part of the context of Thatcher coming into power in 1979.

Must say Nancy66 has a point...

My god, do we even need the question? Thatcher, Thatcher, always Thatcher.

For a lot of the time she was in power there werre no conservative MPs in Scotland
Think there was always one (and is only one) in Dumfries and Galloway but with the recent boundary changes that might go.

Problems set in motion by Thatcher, which will be there for our children, and our children's children, and some of which may never be resolved:

1. People in the South East who cannot have children until a very late age or cannot have the number of children they want, because they cannot afford to buy or rent a house big enough for a family because of the over-population of the South East - caused by her Government telling the rest of the country to 'get on a bike and look for work.' Also applies to no school places nearby, loss of green spaces, commuting long distances, transport infrastructure. All made worse or not resolved by Blair and his economic policies.

1. Destroyed Northern communities. My former home town is still a ghost town. The industry closed down there was making a profit every year - entirely closed down for political reasons.

1. Few jobs available for young people to go into if not academic. Creation of an underclass. Antipathy to the education system by many young people because education system doesn't know what it is training people for because of lack of job options.

1. Few skills in the UK because we don't make much anymore. As our political and social influence wanes we will become increasingly dependent to countries who produce something and have a skilled workforce. Makes us very vulnerable to changes in global environment and politics.

1. Over dependence on the financial sector because what other sectors do we have? Financial sector could move to other countries which would leave us with nothing. Makes it impossible to put in place any kind of fair system of tax or resource sharing because any threat of making the rich contribute fairly leads to threats that they will take their bat and ball home (i.e. move major elements of the banking sector elsewhere). Created a two tier society of the majority of people who actually live in the UK because they either have no choice or because they care about the country, and people who live here because it allows them to make a lot of money. It becomes a nonsense to say we are a rich country, because almost all of us have no access to, or democratic means to regulate that wealth.

I'd blame Thatcher for destroying industry, but blame Blair's government for letting the financial situation get so out of control that it has played a part in global economic problems. I don't see any way out Britain's long term future being in decline compared to the rise of other countries' economies.

thatcher- she had no regard for the working class

Nancy66 sticking doggedly to policies doesn't necessarily make a great leader. Hitler thought he was right you know.

Seahouses. What an excellent post. Perfectly sums up the mess that Thatcher left behind

I didn't say she was a great leader but she did deliver what she said she would - ie that the people who voted for her got what they wanted.

Blair, on the other hand, betrayed everyone who voted for him.

Nancy No point in sticking to policies that don't work. Oh, and she didn't stick to the poll tax reforms!
Gideon will fall for sticking to his policies too, and as I said earlier, had Krushchev stuck to his policies, Cuba would have resulted in world war three, because Kennedy wasn't backing down.

I'm sure she would argue that they did work

it is interesting though that she was voted in 3 times.

she came to power after the 'winter of discontent.' I think you had to have lived through it to know how hideous that was: no rubbish collections, power cuts, schools only open three days, unable to bury deceased loved etc..

I think there was a real feeling of 'never again' that led to Maggie getting voted in consecutive times.

He didn't betray me Nancy. I'd swap him for indecisive Dave any day. Thatcher was hated because she clearly despised the public and is hated for selling off all our manufacturing base. TB is hated because of Iraq and because he has made so much money post being PM....and for being married to Cherie. Everyone hated her because she looked a bit strange and refused to be a Norma Major type but as a barrister & QC she was never going to be that. She did seem to enjoy the 'perks' of Gov. a bit too much though!