We are officially in election mode and about to put someone behind this door for a long time.
I was wondering who is considered to have been a really good prime minister – here’s a top ten – not a personal list, but a much more informed one. In October 2016 the University of Leeds, in conjunction with Woodnewton Associates, surveyed 82 academics specialising in post-1945 British history and politics, following the Brexit EU membership referendum, asking them to rank the performance of our prime ministers. Here’s their opinion:
At no. 10 (no pun intended):
Gordon Brown 2007-2010 Labour
The choice at no. 9 is
Edward Heath 1970-1974 Conservative.
At no. 8
James Callaghan 1976-1979 Labour.
No 7 may come as a bit of a surprise,
it’s the British Bulldog himself, Winston Churchill (1940-1945, this term was not part of the survey) 1951-1955 Conservative.
At no. 6
it’s John Major 1990-1997 Conservative.
At no. 5 in the list is
Harold Wilson 1964-1870, 1974-1976 Labour
The no. 4 spot is taken by another Harold,
Harold Macmillan, known affectionately as Mac, 1957-1963 Conservative.
Now for the top 3 – can you guess who is next?
No. 3 is Tony Blair 1997-2007 Labour.
And at no. 2?
It’s the Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher 1979-1990 Conservative.
Who is at number 1 – can you guess?
It is Clement Attlee 1945-1951 Labour.
These are considered the most successful prime ministers since 1945 – who will be next? Only time will tell.
