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By Root 2722 0

unions fully under the rule of law. But Jim Prior and I disagreed about what should be done. I wanted further action to restrict trade union immunities, which would make union funds liable to court action. Jim’s proposals would not have achieved this. His analysis was, indeed, fundamentally different from mine. In his reading, history showed that the unions could defeat any legislation if they wanted to. I believed that history showed nothing of the sort, but rather that governments in the past had failed the nation through lack of nerve — drawing back when the battle was nearly won. I was also convinced that on the issue of union reform there was a great reserve of public support on which we could draw. Indeed, as I told Jim, I thought that there was a real risk that people would consider that we had done very little to tackle trade union power.

The differences between Cabinet ministers over the economic strategy — and between myself and Jim Prior over trade union reform — were not just ones of emphasis but of fundamentals. If the goals I had set out in Opposition were to be achieved they must be reaffirmed and fought for by a new Cabinet. So it was quite clear to me that a major reshuffle was needed if our economic policy were to continue, and perhaps if I were to remain Prime Minister.

I preferred to have a Cabinet reshuffle during the recess if possible, so that ministers could get used to their departments before being questioned in the House. I also believed that as matters usually got fairly difficult at the end of July, it was better for all of us to have a holiday before decisions were taken. It was not, therefore, until September that I discussed the details with my closest advisers. Willie Whitelaw, Michael Jopling (the Chief Whip) and Ian Gow came over to Chequers on the weekend of 12–13 September. For part of the time Peter Carrington and Cecil Parkinson joined us. The reshuffle itself took place on the Monday.

I always saw first those who were being asked to leave the Cabinet. I began with Ian Gilmour and told him of my decision. He was — I can find no other word for it — huffy. He left Downing Street and denounced government policy to the television cameras as ‘steering full speed ahead for the rocks’ — altogether a flawless imitation of a man who has resigned on principle. Christopher Soames was equally angry — but in a grander way. I got the distinct impression that he felt the natural order of things was being violated and that he was, in effect, being dismissed by his housemaid. Mark Carlisle, who had not been a very effective Education Secretary and leaned to the left, also left the Cabinet — but he did so with courtesy and good humour. Jim Prior was obviously shocked to be moved from Employment where he had come to consider himself all but indispensable. The press had been full of his threats to resign from the Government altogether if he were asked to leave his present position. I wanted this post for the formidable Norman Tebbit, and Jim could not intimidate me by threatening himself. So I called his bluff, and offered him the post of Northern Ireland Secretary. He asked for time to consider, and after some agonizing and some telephoning he accepted my offer and became Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in place of the debonair Humphrey Atkins, who succeeded Ian Gilmour as the main Foreign Office minister in the Commons.

I moved David Howell from Energy to Transport. It gave me great pleasure to promote the immensely talented Nigel Lawson, the intellectual author of the MTFS, into the Cabinet to take his place. Nigel turned out to be a highly successful Secretary of State for Energy, vigorously promoting competition, taking a real grip on his department and building up coal stocks for the inevitable struggle with the miners.

Keith Joseph had told me that he wished to move from Industry. With his belief that there was an anti-enterprise culture which had harmed Britain’s economic performance over the years, it was natural that Keith should now wish to go to Education where that culture had