ON THIS DAY    Themes      Graphics version >>   BBC News >>
Search ON THIS DAY by date   
Front Page |  Years |  Themes |  Witness
Political Issues

01 Dec
1942: Beveridge lays welfare foundations

26 May
1950: UK drivers cheer end of fuel rations

12 Feb
1954: New authority for atomic energy

17 May
1955: Eden takes to the airwaves

05 Mar
1956: US court victory for black students

18 Apr
1956: Macmillan unveils premium bond scheme

07 May
1956: Minister rejects anti-smoking lobby

20 Jul
1957: Britons 'have never had it so good'

30 Oct
1957: Lords to admit first women peers

18 Apr
1960: Thousands protest against H-bomb

19 Mar
1964: 'Ambitious' plans for south east

23 Dec
1964: Beeching to leave British Railways

16 Feb
1965: Beeching plans for 'bloated' railways

18 Jun
1965: Drink-drive limit to be introduced

04 Oct
1965: Immigrants feel at home with BBC

01 Mar
1966: Britain to go decimal in 1971

04 May
1966: Doctors and dentists get huge pay rise

15 Feb
1971: D-Day delivers new UK currency

24 Feb
1971: UK restricts Commonwealth migrants

27 Apr
1971: Protest disrupts Welsh language trial

15 Jun
1971: Councils defy Thatcher milk ban

15 Jul
1971: Seals shot by government decree

20 Jan
1972: UK unemployment tops one million

23 Jun
1972: Chancellor orders pound flotation

06 Nov
1972: Pay and price freeze aims to curb inflation

13 Dec
1972: New offer for Thalidomide victims

01 Jan
1973: Britain joins the EEC

09 Mar
1973: Northern Ireland votes for union

01 May
1973: Thousands strike over pay and prices

24 Jun
1974: Labour rift over nuclear test

15 Dec
1974: New speed limit to curb fuel use

26 Apr
1975: Labour votes to leave the EEC

06 Jun
1975: UK embraces Europe in referendum

09 Jun
1975: First live broadcast of Parliament

19 Jul
1976: Fight for fishing rights in Europe

25 Jul
1978: Motability gets moving in the UK

14 Dec
1978: Labour faces vote of confidence

20 Dec
1979: Council tenants will have 'right to buy'

02 May
1982: British sub sinks Argentine cruiser

31 Jan
1983: British drivers ordered to belt up

28 Mar
1983: Macgregor named as coal boss

01 Apr
1983: Human chain links nuclear sites

08 Dec
1983: Television cameras allowed into Lords

21 Mar
1984: EEC summit collapses over rebate row

20 Jun
1984: O-Levels to be replaced by GCSEs

19 Dec
1984: Britain signs over Hong Kong to China

16 Feb
1985: Falklands' row civil servant resigns

09 Jan
1986: Heseltine quits over Westland

31 Jul
1987: Newspaper caught in Spycatcher row

23 Sep
1987: Ban lifted on MI5 man's memoirs

13 Oct
1988: Government loses Spycatcher battle

20 Oct
1988: New law could erode right to silence

18 Dec
1989: Labour's union U-turn

01 Mar
1990: Secrets act gags whistleblowers

31 Mar
1990: Violence flares in poll tax demonstration

11 Apr
1990: Customs seize 'supergun'

14 Aug
1990: One in five yet to pay poll tax

08 Oct
1990: Britain's first full day in ERM

01 Nov
1990: Howe resigns over Europe policy

10 Dec
1990: Iraq frees British hostages

23 Mar
1991: Tories launch 'citizen charter'

04 Jun
1991: UK army spending to be cut

11 Jul
1991: Anti-poll tax MP jailed

22 Jul
1991: Citizen's charter promises better services

07 Feb
1992: Maastricht treaties make EU official

16 Sep
1992: UK crashes out of ERM

26 Nov
1992: Queen to be taxed from next year

16 Jul
1993: Secret Service goes public

29 Nov
1993: Secret meetings with IRA revealed

01 Feb
1994: MPs condemn sale of Rover

25 May
1994: Camelot wins UK lottery race

06 Jun
1994: Asylum seekers flee detention centre

03 Mar
1995: MPs move to outlaw hunting

09 Mar
1995: Queen marks peace in Belfast

15 Feb
1996: Arms-to-Iraq report published

16 Oct
1996: Handguns to be banned in the UK

06 May
1997: Brown sets Bank of England free

19 May
1997: Labour to stub out tobacco sponsorship

12 Sep
1997: Scots say 'Yes' to home rule

23 Sep
1997: Peace talks wobble after Unionist outburst

29 Sep
1997: Scientists confirm brain diseases link

18 Dec
1997: Dawn of Scottish parliament

10 May
1998: Sinn Fein backs peace deal

23 May
1998: Leaders welcome 'yes' vote for N Ireland

31 Jul
1998: UK imposes total ban on landmines

24 Nov
1998: Queen's speech spells end for peers

06 Jan
2000: Flu outbreak stretches NHS resources

26 Feb
2000: UK Government moves to gag ex-spy

03 Apr
2000: Asylum voucher scheme enforced

04 May
2000: Ken Livingstone voted London mayor

27 May
2000: GM blunder leaves farmers in uproar

07 Jun
2000: Blair 'handbagged' by the WI

01 Jul
2000: Ex-Blair ally attacks prime minister

04 Jul
2000: Litter louts escape the law

27 Jul
2000: Labour publishes plans to revolutionise NHS

14 Jul
2001: NI agreement stalls in Staffordshire

16 Jul
2001: Rebel MPs defeat the government

25 Oct
2001: Crime rates lowest for 20 years

16 Dec
2001: Thousands rally for Scots countryside

23 Jan
2002: Elderly patient sparks Commons row

18 Nov
2003: High security as Bush visits UK

Search ON THIS DAY by date   
Front Page |  Years |  Themes |  Witness
^^ Back to top | ©