Downing Street Years - Margaret Thatcher [537]
November 15 PM signed Anglo-Irish Agreement at Hillsborough.
December 3 Luxemburg European Council.
1986
January 9 Westland: Michael Heseltine resigned.
January 24 Westland: Leon Brittan resigned.
January 28 Publication of Community Charge Green Paper.
April 15 US raid on Libya.
May 3–6 PM visited South Korea and attended Tokyo G7summit.
May 21 Reshuffle. Keith Joseph resigned. Kenneth Bakerreplaced him as Education Secretary.
May 24–27 PM visited Israel.
August 3 Special London Commonwealth summit on SouthAfrica.
October 24 Britain broke off diplomatic relations with Syriafollowing Hindawi affair.
November 13–16 PM visited Camp David, following Reykjaviksummit.
December 5 London European Council.
1987
February 22 Louvre Accord to stabilize the dollar.
March 28 USSR: PM began five-day tour of USSR (ended2 April).
June 8 Venice G7 summit opened.
June 11 General election.
July 17 USA: PM visited President Reagan in Washington.
October 6 Conservative Conference: led to abandonment of decision to phase in community charge (dualrunning).
October 13 Vancouver CHOGM.
October 19 ‘Black Monday’.
November 8 Enniskillen bomb killed 11, injured 60.
December 7 PM held talks with Mr Gorbachev at Brize Norton.
December 8 INF Treaty signed in Washington.
1988
January 4–8 PM toured Africa.
January 10 Lord Whitelaw resigned due to ill-health.
March 7 Sterling ‘uncapped’.
March 15 1988 Budget. Standard rate of income tax cut to 25per cent, top rate to 40 per cent.
March NATO summit in Brussels.
April 6–8 PM visited Turkey.
April 18 Michael Mates’s amendment to band community charge defeated.
May 21 PM spoke to General Assembly of Church of Scotland.
June 2 Interest rates increased from low of 7.5 per cent to 8 per cent.
June 19–21 Toronto G7 summit.
July 17 Alan Walters’s return as economic adviser to PM announced.
July 25 Reshuffle. DHSS split between Kenneth Clarke and John Moore.
July 30 PM began eleven-day tour of the Far East and Australia.
August 20 IRA bomb at Ballygawley, Co. Tyrone. PM cut short Cornish holiday.
September 20 Bruges speech.
November 2 PM began three-day visit to Poland.
November 8 USA: George Bush elected President.
November 17 PM visited Washington: farewell to President Reagan and talks with President Bush.
December 21 Lockerbie bombing.
1989
January 31 Publication of NHS White Paper.
March 27 PM began six-day visit to Africa.
April 1 PM visited Namibia.
April 5 Mr Gorbachev began a three-day visit to UK.
May 29–30 NATO fortieth anniversary summit in Brussels.
June 3 China: Tiananmen Square; massacre.
June 26 Madrid European Council.
July 14–16 French Revolution Bicentennial and Paris G7summit.
July 24 Reshuffle: John Moore, Paul Channon, Lord Youngand George Younger left the Government. Geoffrey Howe from FCO to Lord President and Leader HC. John Major succeeded him at FCO.
September 19–22 PM visited Japan.
October 18–24 Kuala Lumpur CHOGM.
October 26 Nigel Lawson resigned. John Major replaced himas Chancellor and Douglas Hurd became ForeignSecretary.
November 9 East Germany: announced opening of its border with West Germany. Demolition of Berlin Wallbegan 10 November.
December 5 PM defeated Sir Anthony Meyer in leadershipelection 314:33. Twenty-seven abstained.
December 10 Czechoslovakia: end of communist rule.
December 22 Romania: Ceauşescu overthrown.
1990
February 2 South Africa: President de Klerk announcedunbanning of ANC. Nelson Mandela released February 11.
March 31 Trafalgar Square riot.
April 24–25 PM visited Turkey on seventy-fifth anniversary of Gallipoli landings.
July 6 NATO summit in London.
July 9 Houston G7 summit.
July 14 Nick Ridley resigned.
July 30 IRA murdered Ian Gow.
August 2 Gulf: Iraq invaded Kuwait. PM held talks in Aspen, Colorado with President Bush.
September 17–19 PM visited Czechoslovakia and Hungary.
October 3 German reunification.
October 27–28 Rome European Council.
November 1 Geoffrey Howe resigned.
November 19–21 CSCE summit in Paris.
November 20 Conservative