Tories told of battle for jobs
Conservative candidates in the general election were told by the Prime Minister yesterday not to be defensive about the Government's record on unemployment.
With the opposition parties unanimous in immediately branding the Tory manifesto as promising “More of the same” Mrs Margaret Thatcher told about 400 prospective candidates at the traditional eve-of-election conference that Conservative policies offered the best prospects for jobs.
She reminded the enthusiastic gathering at Central Hall, Westminster, that Labour governments always left office with higher unemployment than when they came in. “We are in the battle for more jobs,” she said. “Our policies will produce jobs in the future.”
Mrs Thatcher's remarks underline her acceptance that the unemployment figures will be the main focus of the opposition campaign during the election and her belief that attack will be the best way of countering it.
Also giving the candidates their battle orders yesterday were Mr Michael Jopling, the chief whip, Sir Geoffrey Howe, and Chancellor, and Mr Cecil Parkinson, the party chairman.
Mrs Thatcher sent them to their constituencies happy, with the message to be “cool, calm and elected” after taking them through the political outlined in the manifesto and telling them to shout from the housetops the Government's good record on pensions and the health services at a time of world recession and when it was still paying Labour's debts.
Referring to the manifesto's proposals for trade union reform, she said that the step-by-step approach had paid off well, and there was noisy applause when she mentioned the plans to abolish the Greater London Council and metropolitan counties.
Telling the candidates to expose Labour's “extreme” policies, the Prime Minister said the Opposition offered “spend, spend, spend and borrow” in contrast to the Government's properly costed programme.
A tape of the Conservatives' campaign song “Maggie for Me”, which was unveiled yesterday, is being sent to local constituency associations.