The most influential peacetime Prime Minister of the 20th
century, Margaret Thatcher entered Parliament in 1959
as MP for Finchley, and was appointed Minister for
Pensions and National Insurance. In 1969, she became
opposition spokesman on education, and was Secretary
of State for Education from 1970 to 1974. She succeeded
Edward Heath as Conservative leader in 1975. In 1979, she
became Britain's first woman Prime Minister, elected with a
radical programme of reform based on increased privatisation and reduced Government spending - rolling back 'the frontiers of the state'. Her popularity was dramatically increased following the Falklands War
in 1982. Later, she confronted trade-union power during the miners' strike 1984-85, and reduced the influence of local government through the abolition of metropolitan councils, and the control of expenditure through 'rate-capping'. In 1990, splits in the cabinet over the issue of Europe forced her resignation. An astute Parliamentary tactician, she tolerated little disagreement, either from the opposition or from within
