The Politics of Steel

278 Pages·1978·27.612 MB·English

by  Keith Ovenden (auth.)

THE POLITICS OF STEEL
STUDIES IN POLICY-MAKING
General Editor: Anthony King, Professor of Government,
University of Essex
Most books on British politics are concerned with political
institutions-with the cabinet, Parliament, the political parties and
so on. This new series of books approaches the same subject-matter
from a different point of view. It is conce'rned not with institutions but
with processes-with how laws, policies and decisions are formulated
and implemented. It is hoped that the books in the series will, among
other things, make it clearer how the institutions themselves actually
function. All of the books in the series are addressed to the general
reader, to academic students ofp olitics and also to specialists in the
fields with which the books deal-such .fields as industrial relations,
the nationalised industries, health and housing.
Already published
The Politics of Industrial Relations Michael Moran
THE POLITICS
OF STEEL
KEITH OVENDEN
© Keith Ovenden 1978
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1978 978-0-333-14996-6
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
without permission
First published 1978 by
THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
London and Basingstoke
Associated companies in Delhi
Dublin Hong Kong Johannesburg Lagos
Melbourne New Tork Singapore Tokyo
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Ovenden, Keith
The politics of steel. - (Studies in policy-making)
1. Steel industry and trade - Great Britain -
History 2. Industry and state - Great Britain
I. Title II. Series
338·4'7'66g142094' HDg52 1.6
ISBN 978-1-349-01952-6 ISBN 978-1-349-01950-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-01950-2
This book is sold subject
to the standard conditions
of the Net Book Agreement
FOR THIERRY STARCK
Enfoncement dans le desespoir
d'un ecrivain qui n'ecrit pas
Marguerite Yourcenar
Contents
List if Tables IX
List if Figures xi
Abbreviations Xll
Priface
XV
I INTRODUCTION
Policies and elites
The interview as a resource 9
Case studies I 3
2 THE STEEL INDUSTRY I95I-I964 I6
3 POLICY COMMITMENT IN OPPOSITION:
LABOUR BEFORE I964 25
4 THE GENERAL ELECTION OF I964 AND THE ROLE
OF PUBLIC OPINION 32
5 THE POLITICS OF PARTY: THE GOVERNMENT
AND ITS BACKBENCHERS, I964-I966 42
Prologue 42
The small majority-part 1: October
I964 to May I965 43
Donnelly and Wyatt 53
The small majority-part II: May to
Septembcr I965 s8
George Strauss 6o
The small majority-part III: November
I96s 64
The left wing 65
The small majority-part IV: November
I965 to July I966 67
The government 70
viii Contents
6 THE POLITICS OF IMPOTENCE 75
7 THE POLITICS OF ENGAGEMENT AND
DISENGAGEMENT 86
8 THE POLITICS OF LEGISLATION: THE STEEL BILL
IN PARLIAMENT I 02
The context I 02
The phases of legislation I o6
Parliamentary influence on policy in
legislation I I I
(i) the Conservative Opposition I I I
(ii) the left wing of the Labour party I 20
9 THE POLITICS OF IMPLEMENTATION: THE
ORGANISING COMMITTEE I I24
w THE POLITICS OF IMPLEMENTATION: THE
ORGANISING COMMITTEE II I 36
Preliminaries I 36
Decisions I 40
a) First tasks: the strategy of vesting day I 40
b) The Board, Benson, or something new? I 45
c) The First Report on Organisation I 48
I I IDEOLOGY AND INFORMATION I5I
I2 STEEL AFTER NATIONALISATION I967-I973 I67
I3 THE STEEL INDUSTRY IN THE POLICY PROCESS I92
Appendix: Interviews and Interviewing 205
.Notes 2 I 2
Select Bibliography 239
Index 25I
List of Tables
!.I Parliamentary respondents by party, membership of
Standing Committee D, and representation of steel
producing constituencies IO
2.I Fixed capital expenditure by United Kingdom iron and
steel industry I95I -65 I9
2.2 Capital employed by the 14 major companies, 1966 20
2-3 Distribution of capacity by size of plant 2I
2-4 UK share of the world steel market 1956-64 22
4-I Attitudes to further nationalisation, I96o 33
4-2 Turnover of opinion towards nationalisation of industry
I963-4 35
4·3 Propaganda expenditure by the major steel-producing
companies in 1964
6.I The fifteen interlocking directorships, I966
6.2 Member conferences, chairmen of conferences, and
members of the council of the BISF at 3I December I966
7. I Approximate membership of trade unions in the steel
industry, spring I968
8.I Beliefs on Parliamentary activities, I g64 -7, by political
party I04
8.2 Amendments put down to the Iron and Steel Bill in
Standing Committee 110
I I. I Opinions on the principle of renationalisation, whole
sample
I !.2 Most prominent reason given for attitudes towards the
principle of renationalisation, whole sample I 53
I !.3 Agreement with the form of nationalisation, whole
sample I 55
Most prominent reasons given for and against particular
provisions in the policy of renationalisation, whole
sample
Estimates of Parliamentary influence on the legislation,
and whether this is normal, non-Parliamentary re
spondents only 57
I
I 1.6 Attitudes on the effectiveness of Parliamentary ques
tions, whole sample
X List tif Tables
I I ·7 Perceptions of principal effects of Parliamentary ques-
tions, whole sample I 58
I I .8 Evaluation of the facilities of the House of Commons,
MPs only I6o
I I .g Specialist knowledge, its transfer and its impact, MPs
only I6I
I I .IO Principal regular sources of information about politics
generally, MPs only 162
I I .I I Sources of information about politics, MPs only 163
I I .I2 Numbers of different sources of information about
politics, MPs only 163
I I .I 3 Sources of information amongst non-Parliamentary
respondents 165
I 2. I BSC's Financial and industrial record I g67 -72 I 70
I 2.2 The Product Divisions of BSC at the restructuring in
I970 170
A. I Respondents' frankness against presence of third parties,
whole sample 210