When John Major was elected as Conservative leader in November 1990, little was known about his own brand of Conservatism, and this ambiguity enabled both the 'one-nation' Left and the Thatcherite Right initially to view Major as 'one of us'. His subsequent premiership, however, was to disappoint both wings of the Conservative Party, although it was the 'one-nation' Conservatives who had most reason to feel disappointed, for, as this book illustrates, John Major's premiership provided a continuation of his predecessor's agenda. In a range of policy areas, such as education, social security, industrial relations, local government and the civil service, a Thatcherite approach was adopted, with further reforms pursued, and the same objectives cited, namely choice, cost-cutting, efficiency, consumer sovereignty, individualism, opportunity and rolling back the state. At the same time, many organ-ized interests continued to find themselves excluded from policy-making, in spite of early expectations of a more open and consensual style of government.
