To what extent was Arthur Balfour responsible for Conservative decline Essay Example

To what extent was Arthur Balfour responsible for Conservative decline Essay The 1906 election was a major turning point in the political climate of Edwardian Britain. The loss of this election heralded a period of Conservative decline and Liberal ascendancy. Many historians blame Arthur Balfour, nephew to Lord Salisbury, for the landslide loss for the Conservatives in the 1906 general election. Whether it was the policies he implemented, the political machinations of the Liberals and the newly formed Labour Party or simply a demand for a change in political policy, the 1906 election was a crucial point in the political history of Britain. Balfour was the essence of a true Edwardian politician. He was a good administrator and an excellent debater, a skill he used frequently in the House of Commons. Balfour was brought up close to politics and government as a result of his being nephew to Lord Salisbury esteemed conservative party leader; said by Atlee to be the best Prime Minister of his lifetime. This upbringing was to greatly help him in later life. Balfour aimed to maintain Conservative unity at a time when policy choices greatly divided the party. His clear mind and awareness of Britains new diplomatic and political position in the world was to later help him as Prime Minister. We will write a custom essay sample on To what extent was Arthur Balfour responsible for Conservative decline specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on To what extent was Arthur Balfour responsible for Conservative decline specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on To what extent was Arthur Balfour responsible for Conservative decline specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer However, his cold detached manner made him unpopular with the voters, and was seen by many to be aloof and uncaring. This is shown by Blake, Balfour, however had his blind spots, and their effects on the electoral fortunes of the party were considerable. The Taff Vale Case 1901, highlighted to many Balfours aloof and uncaring nature with regard to the lower classes. In the Taff Vale case, Balfours position of leaving it to the courts made him highly unpopular with the lower classes who saw him to be siding with the upper classes. This allowed the Liberals to make use of the resentment against the Conservatives, and gather support for the next election. His non-intervention also alienated him from the trade unions and the lower classes, thus decreasing Conservative support. The Education Act 1902 was one of Balfours major blunders. Although his intentions were good, as he wanted to provide everyone with a better education, he managed to infuriate the Non-conformists and thus increased Liberal support and unity. However although the Act did do this it provided a better more efficient secondary schooling system. In this way, the act was a success. Yet, the success of Balfours education system was shadowed by the infuriated Non-conformists who were outraged at having to pay for Anglican and Catholic schools. This act was a major political turning point for the Tories and should have shown Balfour that he must be more aware of the concerns of the lower classes: after this act, they lost two constituencies in quick succession, whereas previously they won 9 out of 10 by-elections. The Licensing Act 1904 was another act, which offended the Non-Conformists and increased their unity under the Liberals. The ending of the diplomatic isolation of Britain was to be one of Balfours most important legacies, as it enabled Britain to begin to focus on Europe the new diplomatic theatre for power the days of the colonies were over. The alliances with Japan (1902) and France (1904) helped Britain become more prepared for the ravages of World War 1. Balfours reorganisation of both the army and navy also helped to prepare Britain for WWI. However, these achievements would only be fully appreciated after WWI, as the voters were not particularly bothered about military reforms whilst the empire was at peace. These actions did not speed up Conservative Decline, but nor did they reduce it, and so were not greatly advantageous to the Conservatives. Balfours approval of Milners request for Chinese labour in South Africa was a disastrous decision, which cost the Conservatives a large number of votes. There were three main reactions to this approval that cost the Conservatives votes: first were humanitarian concerns. Many members of the public were unhappy about the conditions the Chinese workers were being forced to work and live in. The second reaction was one of discontent at the emigration route to South Africa being closed. This meant that many unemployed workers were now unable to emigrate to South Africa for work because the demand for labour had been filled by Chinese immigrants. The third reaction was from the trade unions. They believed that if the government could import cheap labour in one of its colonies, then they could do it here in Britain. This outraged them and made them firmly oppose the Conservatives, thus increasing support for the Liberals the only real alternative to the Tories. Tariff reform also united the lower classes against the Conservatives as the Liberals raised the old cry of tax on food! this was one of the few things that could make the lower classes staunch opponents of the Conservatives. However, Balfour was opposed to this reform, and made it clear to Joseph Chamberlain that it would be a grave mistake to introduce it. Yet, as party leader, he did nothing by way of overruling him. This was a grave mistake and increased Liberal support. The Lib-Lab Pact 1903 unified the anti-conservative vote and ensured that more constituencies voted into power either Liberal MPs or Labour MPs. This secret pact ensured that less Conservatives were voted into power thus reducing their chances of winning the election of 1906. To conclude, I believe that Arthur Balfour was one of the reasons for Conservative decline and the loss of the 1906 election. However, I do not believe that it was solely his fault, as rebellious members of his cabinet put forward reforms that he disapproved of and thus alienated their party from the mass voters. This will have increased the speed at which the conservatives were falling into decline. Although this is true, I think that the political machinations of the Liberals also played a hand in the downfall of the Conservatives. In addition, I believe that the tides of change were already acting upon the fortunes of the Conservative party, and that it was merely a question of when they would be voted out of power.

The Horses by Ted Hughes Essays

The Horses by Ted Hughes Essays The Horses by Ted Hughes Paper The Horses by Ted Hughes Paper Essay Topic: Literature The Poems of Ted Hughes Here this is very effective because it gives the reader the impression of a totally empty place, silent, cold and where the narrator is completely alone like the way that some people can come to feel in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. The theme of silence is developed in this way throughout the entire poem, mainly by using metaphors very effectively, accompanied by vivid description e. g. The curlews tear turned its edge on the silence. Slowly detail leafed from the darkness. Then the sun Orange, red, red erupted. I think that this particular quote is very beautiful, as it almost identifies a break in the silence, as if everything was gradually starting to come back to life. Also the colour erupting made me think of noise, rather than silence, giving a significant example of imagery, which I thought very important in helping the reader to understand the poem. I think that the structures and sound patterns which Hughes has used in the poem are very important in helping the reader to understand the way that the poem has been written, and the message that the poet is trying to convey. The way he has used forms of punctuation enables the reader to understand the way and speed it was intended to be read at due to the pauses used in the form of commas, full stops, colons and hyphens, i. e. Till the moorline blackening dregs of the brightening grey . . . The poem is written in couplets (stanzas of two lines) which gives the reader short bursts of almost information through the poets eyes, but as the punctuation does not always indicate that each couplet provides its own individual piece of information (i. e. t the end of the second stanza there is no full stop or comma so the sentence just runs into the third stanza). This gives the effect of the slowing down and speeding up of the poems rhythm, and is a very effective method which is easily understood when the poem is read aloud. I think that The Horses and The Thought Fox have a similar style in the way that punctuation has been used throughout both in order to set the speed of the poems, by the way lines flow into each other, or the way there are short, sharp little sentences. Also in the topics they are written about; they are both written in the form of animals but with the poet writing from the place of the animal. In The Thought Fix, the poet has put himself in the place of a fox, in a comparison about the creative process. This poem seems to start slowly, speed up in the middle stanzas, and then almost come to a standstill at the end when the job is complete in the same kind of way as in The Horses, which gave me the idea that this poem could also be about the creative process, especially considering that Ted Hughes was a poet laureate who had had great experience of the difficulties of a writer. On the other hand these two poems have many differences. They are set out differently; The Horses is written in couplets whereas The Thought Fox is set out in six stanzas of four lines each. Also there is more evident use of punctuation to change the rhythm in The Horses, whereas in The Thought Fox there is hardly any punctuation, making it quite a fast paced poem, all flowing into one.

Organisational Learning and Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organisational Learning and Development - Essay Example These new practices rely upon the idea that performance depends not only on hard and attenuating work of the personnel, but also on such essential characteristics as competence and ability to learn and develop. Despite seeming simplicity, the problem of effective learning and development of employees is exceptionally complex, and if a company fails to properly, effectively and continuously train and educate its human resources in the right areas of the business, at the right time and at the right cost, serious inefficiencies are likely to arise. This will inevitably result in considerable operational difficulties and sometimes may even lead to failure of the organisation (Buckle & Caple, 2004). Information, knowledge, and skills have already become the key aspects of new economic environment (Guest, 1987). As a result, modern organizational studies place increasingly distinct emphasis on issues associated with learning and development of personnel. An effective HRD programme should be built around three basic theoretical concepts: organizational development change, leadership development, and individual, group and organizational learning (Reid, Barrington & Brown, 2004). ... In the past, learning focused primarily on individuals: people worked in large bureaucracies or assembly lines and, consequently, the goal of learning under such circumstances was training of the skills required for their functioning. However, since approximately three decades ago the focus of learning in organisations started to shift from individuals to groups and, what was even more important, the meaning underlying the concepts of 'learning', 'training' and 'development' transformed dramatically. Scholars began to perceive these constructs as continuous rather than occasional while the purpose and the process of learning were also reformulated and recognised as vital for effective organizational performance (Harrison, 2005). The existing research in organizational learning available up to date demonstrates that there are at least three major things adult learners need to know: - What will be learned; - How the learning will be conducted; - Why the new knowledge will be of any value (Knowles, 1984). The need to know about these three aspects strongly affects employees' motivation to learn, outcomes of learning, and motivation to use new knowledge. Normally, five phases of organizational learning are identified in the literature: 1. Analysis The first phase involves full analysis of the organizational needs, identification of the goals which, when reached, will equip employees with knowledge and skills to meet the organization's needs (Buckley & Caple, 2004). The first questions to be asked in the analysis phase are "Is there a need for training" and "If something is wrong, is it caused by a performance problem that training will fix" In the analysis phase the responsibilities/duties required at a certain position are identified and