Stanley Baldwin. CONS PM 1923 1929 and again 1935 37. First entered West. as MP in 1908.

8. Became Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1922. Became Leader of the opposition in 1924. He also participated inthe National government under Ramsay MacDonald. He returned to power in 1935, this era corresponds to a period of full democracy (women vote, various political parties, etc.) Bonar Law was diagnosed with terminal cancer, King George V turned to Baldwin (instead of Lord Curzon LORD?) to become PM. CONS No clear majority in the Commons. The Conservatives could govern for five years but because of the different economic problems (tariffs and protectionism, imports driving prices and profits down) Baldwin preferred to call an early general election. The Conservatives went divided to this election. The outcome was: CONS 258 LAB 191 LIB 159. But the government was defeated in a motion of confidence and Baldwin resigned. During this period, Ramsay MacDonald took over with an unstable minority Labour government. On March 1924, Labour was defeated but the CONS continued to vote with LAB against the LIB on cutting expenditure and Irish policy. Baldwins new cabinet included many former Liberals like Churchill who was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer. Britain was undergoing a large number of social and economic problems (strikes in Scotland and Northern England) A close collaboration started in 1931 between Baldwin and the Conservatives and Ramsay MacDonald who was expelled from the Labour Party Disarmament represented a major problem for Baldwin who campaigned against. He was not completely against it but he thought that great armaments lead inevitably to war In 1932, he declared The time has now come to an end when GB can proceed with unilateral disarmament He did not advocate total disarmament but was for its reduction. Many politicians advised him to make rearmament the central issue but was opposed to this idea saying: "I give you my word that there will be no great armaments". Both Chamberlain and Churchill made it clear that Germany was speeding up its air armament and requested that the money on air armament be doubled ot trebled. LAB opposed any rearmament programme. Clement Attlee said: We are opposed to anything in the nature of rearmament He showed an interest in armament during late 1930s but it was too late, as the UK was not prepared to wage the WWII. Baldwin was accused of deceiving the country of the dangers it faced. The press engaged in this debate and blamed Baldwin along with other political leaders such as Churchill who said: he ought to be hanged

Sir Oswald Mosley Founder of the British Union of Fascists, MP for Harrow from 1918 to 1924 and for Smethwick from 1926 to 1931. He was married to Lord Curzons first wife. He was more interested in her social position and her inheritance. The wedding (May 1920) was a very important event attended by famous people such as King George V and Queen Mary. Mosley spent large amounts of his private fortune on the British Union of Fascists (BUF) and tried to establish it on a firm financial footing by negotiating, through Diana, with Adolf Hitler for permission to broadcast commercial radio to Britain from Germany. Mosley was at this time falling out with the Conservatives over Irish policy but eventually sat as an Independent MP on the opposition side of the House of Commons liberal Westminster Gazette wrote that he was "the most polished literary speaker in the Commons by 1924, he showed interest to the Labour party and eventually joined the Independent Labour Party and allied himself with the left Conservative attacks on him for being too rich and claims he was covering up his wealth He was close to Ramsay MacDonald and hoped for one of the great offices of state, but when Labour won the 1929 general election he was appointed only to the post of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, de facto Minister without Portfolio He was given responsibility for solving the unemployment problem, but found that his radical proposals were blocked either by his superior James Henry Thomas or by the Cabinet Mosley was always impatient and finally resigned in may 1930 He was in favour of imposing tariffs to protect British industries from international finance He created a new Party but was not successful in securing seats. He went to Italy and was profoundly influenced by Benito Mussolini and other fascists. He got back to Britain and created the British Union of Fascists in 1932

This party was anti-communist and protectionist. The party was also involved in violent confrontations, particularly with communists and Jewish groups especially in London. Gradually, the party lost peoples support. After the outbreak of war he led the campaign for a negotiated peace. People were hostile to his ideas and was nearly assaulted Mosley was interned and his Party was prohibited. He was released in 1943 but spent the rest of the war under house arrest. After the war Mosley was contacted by his former supporters and persuaded to rejoin active politics. He formed the Union Movement, calling for a single nation-state covering the continent of Europe (known as Europe a Nation), and later attempted to launch a National Party of Europe