Born into a working-class family inPortsmouth, Callaghan left school early and began his career as a tax inspector, before becoming a trade union official in the 1930s. He served as alieutenant in theRoyal Navy during the Second World War. He was elected toParliament at the1945 election, and was then regarded as being on the left wing of the Labour Party. He was appointed to theAttlee government as aparliamentary secretary in 1947, and began to move increasingly towards the right wing of the Labour Party, while maintaining his reputation as a "Keeper of the Cloth Cap" – that is, seen as maintaining close ties between Labour and the trade unions. Following Labour's defeat at the1951 election, Callaghan increasingly became regarded as a leader of the right wing of the Labour Party, and stood for the positions of deputy leader in1960 and for leader in1963, but was defeated byGeorge Brown for the former andHarold Wilson for the latter.
Following Labour's victory at the1964 election, Wilson appointed Callaghan as Chancellor of the Exchequer; this appointment coincided with a turbulent period for the British economy, during which Callaghan had to tackle both a chronicbalance of payments deficit and variousspeculative attacks on thepound sterling, with its exchange rate to other currencies being fixed by theBretton Woods system. On 18 November 1967, having initially denied that it would do so, the Governmentdevalued the pound sterling. In the wake of the decision, Wilson moved Callaghan to the role of Home Secretary. During this time, Callaghan was responsible for overseeing theoperations of the British Army to support thepolice in Northern Ireland, following a request from theNorthern Ireland government. Callaghan remained in theShadow Cabinet during Labour's period in Opposition from 1970 to 1974; upon Labour's victory at the1974 election, Wilson appointed Callaghan as Foreign Secretary. Callaghan was responsible for renegotiating the terms of Britain's membership of theEuropean Communities (EC), and strongly supported the successful "Yes" vote campaign in the1975 referendum, which confirmed the UK's membership of the EC.
When Wilson suddenly announced his retirement in March 1976, Callaghandefeated five other candidates to be elected Leader of the Labour Party; he was appointed prime minister on 5 April 1976. Labour had won a narrow majority in the House of Commons at the October 1974 election but, through by-election defeats, had lost this by the time Callaghan became prime minister; and several by-election defeats and defections in his early months of power forced him to strike aconfidence and supply agreement with theLiberal Party. This had ended by the time of significant industrial disputes and widespread strikes in the 1978–79 "Winter of Discontent" – which, followed by the defeat of thereferendum on devolution for Scotland, led to minor parties joining with theConservative Party to pass amotion of no-confidence in Callaghan on 28 March 1979. Although remaining personally popular in opinion polls, he led Labour to defeat at the1979 election and was replaced by ConservativeMargaret Thatcher. The 1979 defeat marked the beginning of 18 years in opposition for the Labour Party, the longest in its history.
Callaghan served as Labour leader andLeader of the Opposition until November 1980. He attempted to reform the process by which Labour elected its leader. After leaving the leadership he returned to the backbenches, and between 1983 and 1987 wasFather of the House of Commons. On retiring from the Commons in 1987, he was elevated to theHouse of Lords as Baron Callaghan of Cardiff. He died in 2005 at the age of 92, and remains to date the UK'slongest-lived former prime minister.[3] He is the most recent prime minister to have served in theBritish Armed Forces and the only prime minister to have served in theRoyal Navy.[4][5][6]
Leonard James Callaghan was born at 38 Funtington Road,Copnor,Portsmouth, England, on 27 March 1912. He took his middle name from his father, James (1877–1921), the son of anIrish Catholic father (who had fled to England during theGreat Irish Famine) and a Jewish mother. Callaghan's father ran away from home in the 1890s to join theRoyal Navy; as he was a year too young to enlist, he gave a false date of birth and changed his surname from Garogher to Callaghan so that his true identity could not be traced. He rose to the rate ofChief Petty Officer.[7][8]
His mother was Charlotte Callaghan (née Cundy, 1879–1961) an EnglishBaptist. As the Catholic Church at the time refused to marry Catholics to members of other denominations, James Callaghan senior abandoned Catholicism and married Charlotte in a Baptist chapel. Their first child was Dorothy Gertrude Callaghan (1904–82).[7]
James Callaghan senior served in theFirst World War on board the battleshipHMSAgincourt. After he was demobbed in 1919, he joined theCoastguard and the family moved to the town ofBrixham in Devon, but he died only two years later of a heart attack in 1921 at the age of 44, leaving the family without an income and forced to rely on charity to survive. Their financial situation was improved in 1924 when thefirst Labour government was elected, and introduced changes allowing Mrs Callaghan to be granted a widow's pension of tenshillings a week, on the basis that her husband's death was partly due to his war service.[9][10][11]
In his early years, Callaghan was known by his first name Leonard. When he entered politics in 1945 he decided to be known by his middle name James, and from then on he was referred to as James or Jim.[12] He attendedPortsmouth Northern Secondary School. He gained the Senior Oxford Certificate in 1929, but could not afford entrance to university and instead sat the Civil Service entrance exam.[13] At the age of 17, Callaghan left to work as a clerk for theInland Revenue atMaidstone in Kent. While working at the Inland Revenue, Callaghan joined the Maidstone branch of the Labour Party and the Association of the Officers of Taxes (AOT), a trade union for this branch of the civil service; within a year of joining he became the office secretary of the union. In 1932 he passed a Civil Service exam that enabled him to become a senior tax officer, and in the same year he became the Kent branch secretary of the AOT. The following year he was elected to the AOT's national executive council. In 1934, he was transferred to Inland Revenue offices in London. Following a merger of unions in 1936, Callaghan was appointed a full-time union official and to the post of assistant secretary of theInland Revenue Staff Federation (IRSF), and resigned from his Civil Service duties.[14]
During his time working in the Inland Revenue in the early 1930s, Callaghan met his future wifeAudrey Moulton, and they were married in July 1938 at Maidstone.[15]
His union position at the IRSF brought Callaghan into contact withHarold Laski, the Chairman of the Labour Party'sNational Executive Committee and an academic at theLondon School of Economics. Laski encouraged him to stand for Parliament, although later he requested several times that Callaghan study and lecture at the LSE.
In 1940, following the outbreak of theSecond World War, Callaghan applied to join the Royal Navy, but was initially turned down on the basis that a trade union official was deemed to be areserved occupation. He was finally allowed to join theRoyal Navy Volunteer Reserve as an Ordinary Seaman in 1942. While he trained for his promotion, his medical examination revealed that he was suffering fromtuberculosis, so he was admitted to theRoyal Naval Hospital Haslar inGosport near Portsmouth. After he recovered, he was discharged and assigned to duties with theAdmiralty inWhitehall. He was assigned to the Japanese section, and wrote a service manual for the Royal NavyThe Enemy: Japan. He then served in theEast Indies Fleet on board theescort carrierHMSActivity, and was promoted to the rank ofsub-lieutenant in April 1944.[16][17] As of 2025, Callaghan remains the last British prime minister to be an armed forces veteran and the only one ever to have served in the Royal Navy.[4]
While on leave from the Navy, Callaghan was selected as a Parliamentary candidate forCardiff South: he narrowly won the local party ballot with twelve votes, against the next highest candidateGeorge Thomas, who received eleven. Callaghan had been encouraged to put his name forward for the Cardiff South seat by his friend Dai Kneath, a member of the IRSF National executive fromSwansea, who was in turn an associate and friend of the local Labour Party secretary, Bill Headon.[18]
By 1945, he was serving onHMS Queen Elizabeth in the Indian Ocean. AfterVE Day, he returned, along with other prospective candidates, to the United Kingdom to stand in the general election.[19]
The Labour Party won the overdue general election in a landslide victory on 26 July 1945, bringingClement Attlee to power, in charge of the first-ever majority Labour government. Callaghan won hisCardiff South seat at the1945 general election (and would hold a Cardiff-area seat continuously until his retirement in 1987). He defeated the sittingConservative MP,Sir Arthur Evans, by 17,489 votes to 11,545. He campaigned on such issues as the rapid demobilisation of the armed forces and for a new housing construction programme.[20] He stood on the left wing of the party, and was a vocal critic of the United States in 1945, joining 22 other rebels in voting against accepting theAnglo-American loan.[21] Callaghan did not join theKeep Left group of left-wing Labour MPs, but he did sign a letter in 1947 with 20 other MPs from the group calling for a 'socialist foreign policy' which would create an alternative to the capitalism of the United States and the totalitarianism of theUSSR.[22]
In October 1947, at the age of 35, Callaghan got his first junior ministerial job, when he was appointedParliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport underAlfred Barnes. Callaghan was given responsibility for improving road safety, and most notably he persuaded the government to introducezebra crossings, and to extend the use ofcat's eyes on trunk roads. Callaghan did not oppose the government's use of emergency powers to break dockers' strikes in both 1948 and 1949, however, he sympathised with the feelings of ordinary dockers and wrote to Attlee to protest over how the Dock Labour Scheme was operated.[22]
In February 1950 he was appointed asParliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty. He was a delegate to theCouncil of Europe, where he supported plans for economic co-operation but resisted plans for a European army. When theKorean War broke out in 1950, Callaghan was given responsibility for deciding how the money allocated to theRoyal Navy for rearmament was spent.[22]
After Labour lost power in the1951 general election, Callaghan, who was popular with Labour MPs, was elected to the Shadow Cabinet, and he would serve on the party's front bench for the next 29 years, either in opposition or in government. He was now associated with theGaitskellite wing of the party on the Labour right, although he avoided joining any faction.[23] He served as the Labour spokesman on Transport (1951–53); Fuel and Power (1953–55); Colonial Affairs (1956–61) and Shadow Chancellor (1961–64). He ran unsuccessfully for the Deputy Leadership of the partyin 1960. WhenHugh Gaitskell died in January 1963, Callaghan ran to succeed him, but came third in theleadership contest, which was won byHarold Wilson.[24]
In October 1964,Conservative Prime MinisterAlec Douglas-Home (who had only been in power for twelve months since the resignation ofHarold Macmillan) was forced to call ageneral election, the parliament being about to expire. Labour won a narrow majority, gaining 56 seats for a total of 317 to the Conservatives' 304. The new Labour government underHarold Wilson immediately faced economic problems; Wilson acted within his first hours to appoint Callaghan as the newchancellor of the Exchequer. Callaghan's time as chancellor was characterised by an ultimately doomed effort to stave off devaluation of the pound. The previous chancellor,Reginald Maudling, had initiated fiscally expansionary measures that had helped create a pre-election economic boom. By greatly increasing domestic demand, this had caused imports to grow much faster than exports; thus, when Labour entered government it faced abalance of payments deficit of £800,000,000 (equivalent to £20,477,320,000 in 2023),[25] and sterling came under immediatespeculative attack. Both Wilson and Callaghan took a strong stance againstdevaluation of sterling, partly due to the perception that the devaluation carried out by the previous Labour government in 1949 had contributed to that government's downfall. The alternative to devaluation, however, was a series of austerity measures designed to reduce demand in the economy in order to reduce imports, and to stabilise the balance of payments and the value of sterling.[26]
Just ten days after taking up his post, Callaghan immediately introduced a 15% surcharge on imports, with the exception of foodstuffs and raw materials. This measure was intended to tackle the balance of payments deficit; however, it caused an uproar amongst Britain's international trading partners. The outcry was so intense that it caused the government to announce that the surcharge was a temporary measure. Callaghan later admitted in his autobiography that he could have handled the matter better, and in his haste to tackle the balance of payments problem, had failed to consult foreign governments.[26]
On 11 November, Callaghan gave his first budget and announced increases in income tax, petrol tax and the introduction of a newcapital gains tax, actions which most economists deemed necessary to take the heat out of the balance and sterling deficit. In line with Labour's manifesto commitments, the budget also contained social measures to increase the state pension and the widows pension; measures which were disliked by the City and speculators, causing a run on the pound. On 23 November, it was decided to increase the bank rate from 2% to 7%, which generated a large amount of criticism. Handling the situation was made more difficult by the attitude ofLord Cromer, the Governor of theBank of England, who argued against the fiscal policies of the new Labour government. When Callaghan and Wilson threatened to call a new general election, the governor soon raised a £3,000,000,000 loan to stabilise the reserves and the deficit.[26]
His second budget came on 6 April 1965, in which he announced efforts to deflate the economy and reduce home import demand by £250,000,000. Shortly afterwards, the bank rate was reduced from 7% down to 6%. For a brief time, the economy and British financial market stabilised, allowing in June for Callaghan to visit the United States and to discuss the state of the British economy with PresidentLyndon B. Johnson and theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF).[26]
In July the pound came under extreme pressure, and Callaghan was forced to create harsh temporary measures to demonstrate control of the economy. These included delaying all current government building projects and postponing new pension plans. The alternative was to devalue the pound (or, which would at first have amounted to the same thing, to allow it to float). Callaghan and Wilson, however, were again adamant that a devaluation of the pound would create new social and economic problems and continued to take a firm stance against it.[26] The government continued to struggle both with the economy and with the slender majority which, by 1966, had been reduced to one. On 28 February,Harold Wilson formally announced an election for 31 March 1966. On 1 March, Callaghan gave a 'little budget' to the Commons and announced the historic decision that the UK would adoptdecimal currency. (Not until 1971, under a Conservative government, did the United Kingdom move from the system of pounds, shillings and pence to a decimal system of 100 pence to the pound.) He also announced a short-term mortgage scheme which allowed low-wage earners to maintain mortgage schemes in the face of economic difficulties. Soon afterwards, at the1966 general election, Labour won 363 seats compared to 252 seats against the Conservatives, giving the Labour government an increased majority of 97 seats.[27]
Callaghan introduced his next Budget on 4 May. He had informed the house that he would bring a full Budget to the House when he made his 'little budget' speech prior to the election. The main point of his budget was the introduction of aSelective Employment Tax, penalising the service industry and favouring the manufacturing industry.[28][29] Twelve days after the budget, theNational Union of Seamen called a national strike and the problems facing Sterling were multiplied. Additional strikes caused the balance of payments deficit to increase. However, a £3,300,000,000 loan from Swiss banks was due by the end of the year. On 14 July the bank rate was increased again to seven percent, and on 20 July Callaghan announced a ten-point emergency package to deal with the crisis which included further tax rises and a six-month freeze on wage increases. By early 1967, the economy had begun to stabilise once again with the balance of payments moving into equilibrium, the bank rate was reduced to 6% in March and 5.5% in May.[30]
The economy was soon in turmoil again by June, with theSix-Day War in the Middle East. Several Arab countries, such asKuwait andIraq, announced an oil embargo against Britain, accusing it of intervening on the Israeli side in the conflict, resulting in a rise in oil prices which had a disastrous effect on the balance of payments. Furthermore, the economy was hit in mid-September when a national dock strike lasted for eight weeks. The final straw, however, was anEEC report which suggested that the pound could not be sustained as a reserve currency and it was suggested again that the pound should be devalued. Callaghan responded by pointing out that, had it not been for the Middle East crisis, Britain would have been heading for a balance of payments surplus in 1967. However, rumours that devaluation was on the cards led to heavy selling of Sterling on world markets.[32]
Callaghan now privately confided in Wilson that he doubted that the pound could be saved; this was reinforced after a meeting withAlec Cairncross, head of theGovernment Economic Service, who told him in no uncertain terms that the value of Sterling could not be maintained, and in his view it should be devalued as soon as possible. The IMF offered a contingency fund of $3 billion, but Wilson and Callaghan refused this because of several conditions attached, which they believed would allow the IMF to interfere with economic policy. On Wednesday 15 November, the historic decision was taken to commit the government to a 14.3% devaluation from the existing fixedexchange rate of $2.80 to the pound, to $2.40 to the pound.[32][33] They intended to announce the decision publicly on 18 November. However, in the run-up to the public announcement, Callaghan found himself in a tricky situation when answering questions in the House of Commons: one backbencher,Robert Sheldon, tabled a motion concerning a rumour that Britain would be receiving a loan from banks. Callaghan did not wish to lie to the Commons, but at the same time going public about the devaluation decision before the 18th would be financially disastrous for the country. He answered the initial question by stating that he did not comment on rumours. However, a follow-up question was made byStan Orme suggesting that devaluation was preferable todeflation, which caused a major problem. Callaghan replied that he had "nothing to add or subtract from, anything I have said on previous occasions on the subject of devaluation"... Speculators seized on the fact that he had not denied there would be a devaluation and started selling Sterling. Over the next 24 hours, the flight from Sterling cost the country £1,500 million.[34] The situation was a great political controversy at the time. AsDenis Healey in his autobiography notes:
Nowadays exchange rates can swing to and fro continually by an amount greater than that, without attracting much attention outside the City columns of the newspapers. It may be difficult to understand how great a political humiliation this devaluation appeared at the time—above all to Wilson and his Chancellor, Jim Callaghan, who felt he must resign over it. Callaghan's personal distress was increased by a careless answer he gave to a backbencher's question two days before the formal devaluation. This cost Britain several hundred million pounds.[35]
Before the devaluation, Jim Callaghan had announced publicly to the Press and theHouse of Commons that he would not devalue, something he later said was necessary to maintain confidence in the pound and avoid creating jitters in the financial markets. Callaghan immediately offered his resignation as chancellor, and increasing political opposition forced Wilson to accept it. Wilson then movedRoy Jenkins, the home secretary, to be chancellor; Callaghan became the new home secretary on 30 November 1967.[36]
Callaghan was responsible for theCommonwealth Immigrants Act 1968, a controversial piece of legislation prompted by Conservative assertions that an influx ofKenyan Asians would soon inundate the country. It passed through the Commons in a week and placed entry controls on holders of British passports who had "no substantial connection" with Britain by setting up a new system. In his memoirsTime and Chance, Callaghan wrote that introducing the Commonwealth Immigrants Bill had been an unwelcome task but that he did not regret it. He said the Asians had "discovered a loophole", and he told a BBC interviewer: "Public opinion in this country was extremely agitated, and the consideration that was in my mind was how we could preserve a proper sense of order in this country and, at the same time, do justice to these people – I had to balance both considerations". An opponent of the Act, Conservative MPIan Gilmour, said that it was "brought in to keep the blacks out. If it had been the case that it was 5,000 white settlers who were coming in, the newspapers and politicians, Callaghan included, who were making all the fuss would have been quite pleased".[37]
Also significant was the passing of theRace Relations Act in the same year, making it illegal to refuse employment, housing or education on the basis of ethnic background. The Act extended the powers of theRace Relations Board at the time, to deal with complaints of discrimination and unfair attitudes. It also set up a new supervisory body, the Community Relations Commission, to promote "harmonious community relations".[38] Presenting the Bill to Parliament, Callaghan said: "The House has rarely faced an issue of greater social significance for our country and our children."
Callaghan's tenure as home secretary was marked by the emerging conflict inNorthern Ireland: Like all British governments since thepartition of Ireland in 1921, Harold Wilson's Labour government preferred not to intervene in the affairs of Northern Ireland. However in August 1969,escalating sectarian violence between the province'sProtestant andCatholic communities, gave theGovernment of Northern Ireland little choice but to ask the British government to intervene directly and send in troops, and it was as home secretary that Callaghan took the decision todeploy British Army troops in the province. In return Callaghan and Wilson demanded that various reforms be implemented in the province, such as the phasing out of the Protestant paramilitaryB-Specials, and their replacement by theUlster Defence Regiment, which was open to Catholic recruits, and various reforms to reduce discrimination against Catholics, such as reforms to the voting franchise, and a reform of local government boundaries and housing allocations. Although the troops were initially welcomed by Northern Ireland's Catholics, by early 1970 this had soured, and theProvisional IRA emerged, and embarked on what became a decades long violent campaign during what became known asThe Troubles.[40]
In 1969, Callaghan, a strong defender of the Labour–trade union link, led the successful opposition in a divided cabinet toBarbara Castle'sWhite Paper "In Place of Strife" which sought to modify trade union law. Amongst its numerous proposals were plans to force unions to call a ballot before a strike was held and the establishment of an Industrial Board to enforce settlements in industrial disputes.[41] Ten years later, Callaghan's actions in opposing trade union reform would come back to haunt him during theWinter of Discontent.[42]
Callaghan initially became Shadow Home Secretary, later becomingShadow Foreign Secretary. In 1973, after an approach from the Conservative ChancellorAnthony Barber he agreed to have his name go forward for the job of Managing Director of theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF), however, this was vetoed by the French government.[43]
In July 1974 a crisis erupted inCyprus, when there wasa coup d'etat on the island, sponsored by theGreek military junta, which installed the pro-Greek puppet leaderNikos Sampson as the President, who threatened to unify the island with Greece. Turkey responded bylaunching an invasion of the island to protect the island's Turkish community. Britain was involved in the dispute as a signatory of the1960 Treaty of Guarantee. Britain sent troops alongside the UN to prevent further advancement of Turkish troops. Callaghan led diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire, and called on both sides to attend tripartite meetings on the crisis with Britain. On 22 July a ceasefire was called. The tripartite talks got underway, and in August an agreement was reached to make the ceasefire permanent, with abuffer zone patrolled by the UN between the Greek and Turkish controlled parts of the island.[44] As of 2025 the islandremains partitioned.
Labour had entered office with the policy of renegotiating the terms of the United Kingdom's membership of theEuropean Community, and then holding a referendum on remaining in the EC on these terms. Callaghan was put in charge of these negotiations. When the talks concluded, Callaghan ledthe Cabinet in declaring the new terms acceptable and he supported a successful "Yes" vote in the1975 European Community referendum. Callaghan had formerly been on theeurosceptic wing of the Labour Party, however, during the negotiations and referendum he converted to be a pro-European.[45] He was awarded theFreedom of the City ofCardiff on 16 March 1975.[46]
In 1975, Callaghan flew out toUganda in order to bring home the British lecturerDenis Hills, who had been sentenced to death by Uganda's dictatorIdi Amin for writing a book critical of him. After an appeal for clemency by both theQueen and the prime minister, Amin agreed to release Hills on the condition that Callaghan appeared in person to take him back to the UK.[44]
Also in 1975,Argentina made territorial claims on theFalkland Islands. In response, Callaghan sentHMSEndurance to the islands, in order to send a message to Argentina that Britain would defend them. Seven years later, in 1982, Callaghan criticised the government ofMargaret Thatcher for its decision to withdrawEndurance from the islands; a decision which contributed to theArgentine invasion that year.[44]
Barely two years after beginning his second spell as prime minister, Wilson announced his resignation on 16 March 1976. Although this came as a surprise to most people, Callaghan had been tipped off by Wilson several days in advance. Callaghan was the favourite to win the subsequent leadership election; although he was the oldest candidate, at 64 years old, he was also the most experienced and least divisive, being seen as in the centre ground of the Labour Party. Popularity with all parts of the Labour movement saw him through the ballot of Labour MPs to win the leadership vote. On 5 April 1976, Callaghan became Prime Minister.[47]
Callaghan was the only prime minister to have held all three leading Cabinet positions – chancellor of the exchequer, home secretary and foreign secretary – prior to becoming prime minister.
On becoming Prime Minister, Callaghan immediately reshuffled the Cabinet:Anthony Crosland was given Callaghan's previous job as Foreign Secretary, whileMerlyn Rees became Home Secretary, replacingRoy Jenkins who Callaghan nominated to becomePresident of the European Commission. Callaghan removedBarbara Castle, with whom he had a poor relationship, from the Cabinet, and gave her job at social security toDavid Ennals.[48]
Callaghan (right) with US presidentJimmy Carter in 1978
Callaghan came to office at a troubled time for the British economy, which was still recovering from the1973–75 global recession, and was beset by double-digit inflation, and rising unemployment (i.e.stagflation). Within months of entering office, his government wasfaced with a financial crisis, which caused the ChancellorDenis Healey to ask theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) for a large loan of $3900 million to maintain the value ofsterling. The IMF demanded large cuts in public spending in return for the loan, which caused consternation among Labour's supporters. The Cabinet was split on the issue, and the left of the party led byTony Benn put forward anAlternative Economic Strategy as a proposed alternative to the loan, which involvedprotectionism, but this option was ultimately rejected. After tough negotiations, the government was able to negotiate a reduction in the proposed public spending cuts from £5000 million to £1,500 million in the first year, and then £1000 million a year over the next two years. In the event, it turned out that the loan had not been necessary, as it was based on an overestimation of thePublic Sector Borrowing Requirement by theTreasury: The government only had to draw on half of the loan, and it was paid back in full by May 1979. By 1978, the economic situation showed signs of improvement, with unemployment falling, and inflation falling to single digits. Healey was able to introduce an expansionary budget in April 1978.[49]
Callaghan was widely judged to have handled the IMF crisis skilfully, avoiding any resignations from the Cabinet, and negotiating much lower spending cuts than had been originally demanded.[49][50]
Callaghan's time as prime minister was dominated by the troubles in running a government with a minority in theHouse of Commons: Labour had won a narrow majority of three seats at theOctober 1974 election, however by April 1976, their overall majority had disappeared, due to by-election losses and the defection of two MPs to the breakawayScottish Labour Party, which left Callaghan heading aminority government, forced to do deals with smaller parties in order to govern. An arrangement negotiated in March 1977 withLiberal Party leaderDavid Steel, known as theLib–Lab pact, lasted until August the following year. Deals were then forged with various small parties including theScottish National Party (SNP) and the Welsh nationalistPlaid Cymru, prolonging the life of the government. The nationalist parties, in turn, demandeddevolution to their respective constituent countries in return for their supporting the government. When referendums for Scottish and Welsh devolution were held in March 1979 theWelsh devolution referendum saw a large majority vote against, while theScottish referendum returned a narrow majority in favour, but failed to reach the required threshold of 40% of the electorate in support. When the Labour government duly refused to push ahead with setting up the proposed Scottish Assembly, the SNP withdrew its support for the government: this finally brought the government down as the Conservatives triggered avote of no confidence in Callaghan's government that was lost by a single vote on 28 March 1979, necessitating ageneral election.[49]
Callaghan's time as prime minister saw broad continuation of the policies which Labour had adopted since it had been elected in 1974 under Wilson. Callaghan continued the policies of the "social contract" which sought to control inflation through a voluntarywage restraint agreement with the trade unions. Although the public spending cuts after 1976 made it more difficult for the government to deliver the increased benefits which had been promised as part of the package. Another policy continuation was theNational Enterprise Board (NEB) which formed the centrepiece of the government'sindustrial policy. In practice, the NEB's main activity became one of rescuing failing companies.[49]
"We used to think that you could spend your way out of a recession and increase employment by cutting taxes and boosting government spending. I tell you in all candour that that option no longer exists, and in so far as it ever did exist, it only worked on each occasion since the war by injecting a bigger dose of inflation into the economy, followed by a higher level of unemployment as the next step."
This has been seen as the repudiation ofKeynesian economics, which had formed the bedrock of thepost-war consensus, and a precursor toMonetarism, with the fight against inflation being pursued ahead of the aim offull employment, which had been the policy of every post-war government. Although Callaghan was never a full-blown Monetarist, as he had rejected larger cuts in public expenditure which would have resulted in higher unemployment.[49][52]
In February 1977, an easing of the conditions under which unemployment benefit can be paid to people who are unemployed as a result of a trade dispute was carried out. As a result of this change (one that had been recommended by a Royal Commission on Trade Unions and Employers' Associations back in 1968) “only those participating in or directly interested in the trade dispute are disqualified from benefit,” as noted by one study.[54] In August 1977 a new rule was made (Statutory Instrument No 1037/1977 dated the 18th of June 1977) “under Section 23 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1969, restricting the circumstances in which a court may remand a person aged under 17 to a Prison Department establishment in England and Wales.”[55] In Scotland, theCommunity Service by Offenders Act 1978 introduced provisions whereby offenders might, under certain circumstances, be ordered by courts to undertake community work as an alternative to a prison sentence. This legislation brought Scotland in line with England and Wales where similar provisions already apply. TheMines (Precautions Against Inrushes) Regulations 1979 applied to all types of mines and made provision for measures to be taken against the hazard of inrushes of water or gas or material which flows when wet.[56] TheProtection from Eviction Act 1977 “made it an offence unlawfully to evict (or to attempt to do so) any resident occupant, or to enforce the right to repossession other than through the courts. It laid down restrictions on the validity of notices to quit.” TheRent Act 1977, which applied to England and Wales, “laid down the means of fixing rents for controlled or regulated tenancies, and also for tenancies of housing associations or housing trusts.”[57]
TheHome Purchase Assistance and Housing Corporation Guarantee Act 1978 gave help to first-time home buyers.[58] TheInner Urban Areas Act 1978 allowed local authorities to assist declining industrial areas and central government provided new subsidies to those inner city areas with the most problems,[59] while the 1978 Finance Act introduced profit-sharing schemes.[60] The Consumer Safety Act 1978 protected consumers from purchasing potentially harmful goods,[61] On the 3rd of April 1979 the number of hours that lone parents had to work to qualify for Family Income Supplement was reduced from 30 to 24 per week.[62]
During his first year in office, Callaghan started what has since become known as 'The Great Debate', when he spoke atRuskin College,Oxford, about the 'legitimate concerns' of the public about the quality of education in the nation's maintained schools. This discussion led to greater involvement of the government, through its ministries, in the curriculum and administration of state education, leading to the eventual introduction of theNational curriculum some ten years later.[63] In 1977 he caused controversy with the appointment ofPeter Jay, his then son-in-law as theBritish Ambassador to the United States.[64]
Over the summer of 1978, most opinion polls showed Labour with a lead of up to five points, and the expectation grew that Callaghan would call an autumnsnap election, which would have given him a second term in office until autumn 1983.[65][49] The economy had started to improve by this time: 1978 was a year of economic recovery for Britain, with inflation falling to single digits, unemployment declining during the year from a peak of 1.5 million in the third quarter of 1977, to 1.3 million a year later, and general living standards going up by more than 8%.[66][49] Famously, he strung along the opposition and was expected to make his declaration of election in a broadcast on 7 September 1978.[67] Instead he announced that the election would be delayed until the following year, which was met with almost universal surprise.[68] His decision not to call an election was seen by many as a sign of his dominance of the political scene and he ridiculed his opponents by singing old-time music hall starVesta Victoria's song "Waiting at the Church" at that month'sTrades Union Congress meeting.[69][70] This was celebrated by the TUC but has since been interpreted as a moment ofhubris.[71] Callaghan intended to convey the message that he had not promised an election.[69]
Callaghan's failure to call an election during 1978 was later widely seen as a political miscalculation;[72] indeed, he himself later admitted that not calling an election was an error of judgement. However, private polling by the Labour Party in the autumn of 1978 had shown the two main parties with about the same level of support.[73]
Callaghan's method of dealing with the long-term economic difficulties involvedwage restraint, which had been operating for four years with reasonable success. He gambled that a fifth year would further improve the economy and allow him to be re-elected in 1979, and so he attempted to hold pay rises to 5% or less. The trade unions rejected continued wage restraint and in a wave of widespread strikes over the winter of 1978–79 (known as theWinter of Discontent) secured higher pay. The industrial unrest made his government unpopular, and Callaghan's response to one interview question only made it worse. Returning to the United Kingdom from theGuadeloupe Conference in January 1979, Callaghan was asked, "What is your general approach, in view of the mounting chaos in the country at the moment?" Callaghan replied, "Well, that's a judgement that you are making. I promise you that if you look at it from outside, and perhaps you're taking rather a parochial view at the moment, I don't think that other people in the world would share the view that there is mounting chaos." This reply was reported inThe Sun under the headline "Crisis? What Crisis?".[74] Callaghan also later admitted in regard to the Winter of Discontent that he had "let the country down".[75]
The Winter of Discontent saw Labour's performance slump dramatically in the opinion polls. They had topped most of the pre-winter opinion polls by several points, but in February 1979 at least one opinion poll was showing the Conservatives 20 points ahead of Labour and it appeared inevitable that Labour would lose the forthcoming election.[76]
On 28 March 1979, the House of Commons passed amotion of no-confidence by one vote, 311–310, which forced Callaghan to call ageneral election which was held on 3 May.[78] The Conservatives underMargaret Thatcher ran a campaign on the slogan "Labour Isn't Working". Although Callaghan remained personally more popular with the electorate than Thatcher, the Conservatives won the election with an overall majority of 43 seats.[79][80] The Labour vote held up, with the party winning a similar number of votes to 1974, however the Conservatives benefited from a surge in turnout.[81]
During the 1979 election campaign, Callaghan detected a sea-change in public opinion, which he privately opined:[51]
"You know there are times, perhaps once every thirty years, when there is a sea-change in politics. It then does not matter what you say or what you do. There is a shift in what the public wants and what it approves of. I suspect there is now such a sea change and it is for Mrs Thatcher."
After losing power in 1979, Labour spent the next 18 years in opposition, pejoratively described as the period in wilderness for the party.[82]
In the immediate aftermath of the election defeat, Callaghan wanted to resign as leader, but was persuaded to stay on in the hope that he would provide some stability, and ease the way forDenis Healey to be elected as his successor. During Callaghan's 17-month stint as opposition leader, the Labour Party was torn apart by factional struggles between the left and right of the party. In the event, the left succeeded in electingMichael Foot as his successor following theNovember 1980 leadership election, and he returned to the backbenches.[83]
In 1983, he attacked Labour's plans to reduce defence,[85][86] and the same year becameFather of the House as the longest continually-serving member of the Commons.
His wifeAudrey, a former chairman (1969–82) ofGreat Ormond Street Hospital, spotted a letter to a newspaper which pointed out that thecopyright ofPeter Pan, which had been assigned byJ. M. Barrie to the hospital, was going to expire at the end of that year, 1987 (50 years after Barrie's death, the then-current copyright term). In 1988, Callaghan moved an amendment to theCopyright Designs & Patents Act, then under consideration in the House of Lords, to grant the hospital a right to royalty in perpetuity despite the lapse of copyright, and it was passed by the government.
During the 1980s, Lord Callaghan supported the work of theJim Conway Memorial Foundation (JCF), a registered educational charity. He gave the foundation's inaugural memorial lecture in 1981 and took the Chair for a JCF symposium in 1990, being the final event of that ten-year lecture series.[88]
Tony Benn recorded in his diary entry of 3 April 1997 that during the1997 general election campaign, Callaghan was telephoned by a volunteer at Labour headquarters asking him if he would be willing to become more active in the party. According to Benn:
One young woman in her mid-twenties rang up Jim Callaghan and said to him on the phone, "Have you ever thought of being a bit more active in politics?" So Callaghan said, "Well I was a Labour Prime Minister – what more could I do?"[89]
During an interview broadcast on theBBC Radio 4 programmeThe Human Button, Callaghan became the only prime minister to go on record with his opinion on ordering a retaliation in the event of a nuclear attack on the United Kingdom:
"If it were to become necessary or vital, it would have meant the deterrent had failed, because the value of the nuclear weapon is frankly only as a deterrent", he said. "But if we had got to that point, where it was, I felt, necessary to do it, then I would have done it. I've had terrible doubts, of course, about this. I say to you, if I had lived after having pressed that button, I could never, ever have forgiven myself."[90]
In October 1999, Callaghan toldThe Oldie Magazine that he would not be surprised to be considered as Britain's worst prime minister in 200 years. He also said in this interview that he "must carry the can" for the Winter of Discontent.[91]
Callaghan's interests includedrugby (he played lock forStreatham RFC before the Second World War), tennis and agriculture. He marriedAudrey Elizabeth Moulton, whom he had met when they both worked as Sunday School teachers at the local Baptist church,[93] in July 1938 and had three children – one son and two daughters.
Julia, who married Ian Hamilton Hubbard and settled in Lancashire
Michael, who married Jennifer Morris and settled in Essex.
In 1968, Callaghan purchased a farm inRingmer, East Sussex, and in his retirement he and his wife commenced full time farming there.[24]
Although there is much doubt about how much belief Callaghan retained into adult life, the Baptist nonconformist ethic was a profound influence throughout all of his public and private life.[1] It is claimed that Callaghan was anatheist,[95] who lost his belief in God while he was working as a trade union official.[96] His son Michael Callaghan disagrees: "My father, Jim Callaghan, was brought up as a practising Baptist and as a young man was a Sunday school teacher. As a young man embracing socialism, he had difficulties reconciling his new beliefs with the teachings of his church, but he was persuaded to stay in his Baptist chapel. [...] Incidentally, the title of his autobiography is 'Time and Chance', a quote from Ecclesiastes 9:11."[97]
Callaghan died fromlobar pneumonia,cardiac failure and kidney failure, on 26 March 2005.[1][98] He died just one day before his 93rd birthday and 11 days after his wife of 67 years, who had spent the last four years of her life in a nursing home due toAlzheimer's disease. After her death, Callaghan moved into her former room at the nursing home inBurgess Hill, Sussex, and spent his final days there.[1] He died as Britain's longest-lived former prime minister, having surpassedHarold Macmillan's record 39 days earlier. Callaghan died four months before former Prime MinisterEdward Heath.[99]
His contribution and legacy are still contested. The left-wing of the Labour Party considers him a traitor whose betrayals of true socialism laid the foundations forThatcherism.[102] They point to his decision in 1976 to allow the IMF to control the government budget. They accuse him of abandoning the traditional Labour commitment to full employment. They blame his rigorous pursuit of a policy of controlling income growth for the Winter of Discontent.[103] Writers on the right of the Labour Party complained that he was a weak leader who was unable to stand up to the left.[104] New Labour writers who admireTony Blair identify Callaghan with the old-style partisanship that was a dead end, and which a new generation of modernisers had to repudiate.[105]
Practically all commentators agree that Callaghan made a serious mistake by not calling an election in the autumn of 1978.Bernard Donoughue, a senior official in his government, depicts Callaghan as a strong and efficient administrator who stood heads above [sic] his predecessorHarold Wilson.[106] The standard scholarly biography byKenneth O. Morgan is generally favourable – at least for the middle of his premiership – while admitting failures at the beginning, at the end, and in his leadership role followingMargaret Thatcher's victory. The treatment found in most textbooks and surveys of the period remains largely negative.[107]
HistoriansAlan Sked and Chris Cook have summarised the general consensus of historians regarding Labour in power in the 1970s:
If Wilson's record as prime minister was soon felt to have been one of failure, that sense of failure was powerfully reinforced by Callaghan's term as premier. Labour, it seemed, was incapable of positive achievements. It was unable to control inflation, unable to control the unions, unable to solve the Irish problem, unable to solve the Rhodesian question, unable to secure its proposals for Welsh and Scottish devolution, unable to reach a popularmodus vivendi with the Common Market, unable even to maintain itself in power until it could go to the country at the date of its own choosing. It was little wonder, therefore, that Mrs Thatcher resoundingly defeated it in 1979.[108]
Coat of arms of James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff
Crest
A sea-dragon sejant gules, langued and scaled or, its tail of the last scaled gules, the dorsal fin also gules, about the neck a mural crown or, masoned gules, and supporting to the front with the fin of the dexter foreleg a portcullis gold.
Escutcheon
Quarterly vert and azure in the former a portcullis or in the latter a lymphad with an anchor at its prow and masted or the sail set argent and pennants flying gules overall a fess or to the sinister thereof a grassy mount with a hurst of oak trees and issuing therefrom passant to the dexter a wolf proper.
Motto
Malo laborare quam languere (I had rather labour than be idle).[109]
Orders
The Most Noble Order of the Garter.
Symbolism
The portcullis on green represents his parliamentary career. The colour green also refers his farming interests. The wolf and oak trees are taken from the arms of the Irish Callaghan sept. The lymphad (ship) represents his naval service in the Second World War and his family's naval links. His family's naval links are further represented in the crest by the sea-dragon. It is also inspired by the Welsh dragon, which in turn refers to the port of Cardiff, which he represented in Parliament.[110]
^Sherrin, Richard (22 September 2021)."10 Facts About James Callaghan".History Hit. Retrieved25 January 2025.Callaghan went on to become the longest living Prime Minister in history. He died on 26 March 2005, aged 92.
^ab"James Callaghan, Lord Callaghan of Cardiff".www.parliament.uk. Retrieved25 January 2025.When he became Prime Minister in 1976, he became the last armed forces veteran to enter that office and the only Prime Minister who served in the Royal Navy.
^"Kindness and candour".The Guardian. 27 March 2005.ISSN0261-3077. Retrieved25 January 2025.He saw war service, the last British prime minister to do so, volunteering for the navy, in which his father had served.
^Stewart, Graham (25 November 2020)."Britain's last conservative prime minister".The Critic Magazine. Retrieved25 January 2025.He was the last prime minister of Great Britain to have served in her armed forces.
^Kenneth O. Morgan,Callaghan: A Life, 1997, p. 5: "His father's mother was Elizabeth Bernstein, from Sheffield; he was, therefore, a quarter Jewish as well."
^Knight, Richard (2 December 2008)."Finger on the Nuclear Button".BBC Today Programme. BBC.Archived from the original on 9 November 2018. Retrieved3 November 2018.
^Sked, Alan, and Chris Cook,Post-War Britain: A Political History (4th edn 1993), p. 324.
^Burke's Peerage and Baronetage (107 ed.). Burkes Peerage & Gentry LLC. 2003. p. 650.ISBN0971196621.
^Chessyre, Hubert (1995–1996)."The Heraldry of the Garter Banners"(PDF).Report of the Society of the Friends of St George's and the Descendants of the Knights of the Garter.VII (7): 288. Retrieved19 January 2022.
Allen, David. "James Callaghan, 1974–76", inBritish Foreign Secretaries Since 1974 (Routledge, 2004) pp. 61–80.
Ashton, Nigel. "'A Local Terrorist Made Good': the Callaghan government and the Arab–Israeli peace process, 1977–79".Contemporary British History 31.1 (2017): 114–135onlineArchived 19 July 2018 at theWayback Machine.
Bell, Patrick.The Labour Party in Opposition 1970–1974 (Routledge, 2012).
Brivati, Brian. "(Leonard) James Callaghan, Lord Callaghan of Cardiff", inBiographical Dictionary of British Prime Ministers (Routledge, 2002) pp. 350–357.
Byrne, Christopher, Nick Randall, and Kevin Theakston. "The Collapse of Keynesian Welfarism 1970–1979: Heath, Wilson, Callaghan." inDisjunctive Prime Ministerial Leadership in British Politics (Palgrave Pivot, Cham, 2020). 51–83.
Childs, David.Britain since 1945: A Political History (7th edn., 2012), pp. 190–212.
Conroy, Harry.James Callaghan (Haus, 2006).
Davies, Andrew.To build a New Jerusalem: the British Labour Party from Keir Hardie to Tony Blair (1996)online
Dell, Edmund.The Chancellors: A History of the Chancellors of the Exchequer, 1945–90 (HarperCollins, 1997), pp. 304–346, covers his term as Chancellor.
Derbyshire, Dennis.Politics in Britain: From Callaghan to Thatcher (Political Spotlights). (Chambers, 1990).
Deveney, Paul J.Callaghan's Journey to Downing Street (2010), scholarly study to 1976.
Donoughue, Bernard.Prime Minister: Conduct of Policy Under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan, 1974–79 (Jonathan Cape, 1987).
Dorey, Peter. "'Should I stay or should I go?': James Callaghan's decision not to call an autumn 1978 general election", inBritish Politics (2016) 11#1 pp 95–118.abstractArchived 10 June 2018 at theWayback Machine
Dorey, Peter. "'A Rather Novel Constitutional Experiment': The Formation of the 1977–8 'Lib–Lab Pact'", inParliamentary History 30#3 (2011): 374–394.
Donoughue, Bernard.The Heat of the Kitchen (Politico's Publishing, 2003).
Hay, Colin. "The winter of discontent thirty years on", inThe Political Quarterly 80.4 (2009): 545–552.
Hennessy, Peter.The Prime Minister: the office and its holders since 1945 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2001), pp. 376–96.
Hickson, Kevin; Miles, Jasper (eds.)James Callaghan: An Underrated Prime Minister? (Biteback, 2020)
Hickson, Kevin; Seldon, Anthony (eds.)New Labour, Old Labour: The Wilson and Callaghan Governments 1974–1979 (Routledge, 2004).
Holmes, Martin.The Labour government, 1974–79: political aims and economic reality (Macmillan, 1985).
Hopkins, Stephen. "The memoir writing of the Wilson and Callaghan governments: The Labour Party and constitutional policy in Northern Ireland", inThe Northern Ireland Troubles in Britain (Manchester University Press, 2016) pp. 57–72.
Hughes, R. Gerald, et al. "Labour's Defence and Foreign Policy, 1976–79", inJames Callaghan: An Underrated Prime Minister? (Biteback, 2020) pp. 235–258.
Jefferys, Kevin (ed.)Leading Labour (I. B. Tauris, 1999).
Jones, Tudor.Remaking the Labour Party: From Gaitskell to Blair (Routledge, 2005).
Kirkup, Jonathan (ed.)The Lib-Lab Pact: A Parliamentary Agreement, 1977–78 (2014)
Leonard, Dick. "James Callaghan—Labour's conservative", inA Century of Premiers: Salisbury to Blair (2005) pp, 282–299.online
Meredith, Stephen. "The oratory of James Callaghan", inLabour orators from Bevan to Miliband (Manchester University Press, 2016)onlineArchived 22 September 2017 at theWayback Machine.
Meredith, Stephen.Labours old and new: the parliamentary right of the British Labour Party 1970–79 and the roots of New Labour (Oxford University Press, 2008).
Morgan, Kenneth O. "James Callaghan, 1976–1979", inFrom New Jerusalem to New Labour: British Prime Ministers from Attlee to Blair (Palgrave Macmillan UK, 2010) pp. 123–143.online
Morgan, Kenneth O. "United Kingdom: a comparative case study of labour prime ministers Attlee, Wilson, Callaghan and Blair", inThe Journal of Legislative Studies 10.2–3 (2004): 38–52.https://doi.org/10.1080/135723304200032220
Morgan, Kenneth O.Callaghan: A Life (Oxford University Press, 1997).online
Morgan, Kenneth O.Michael Foot: a life (HarperPress, 2007)online
Morgan, Kenneth O.Britain since 1945: The People's Peace (2nd edn., 2001), pp. 397–433.
Pryce, Sue. "James Callaghan 1976–9: A Caretaker", in Sue Pryce,Presidentializing the Premiership (Palgrave Macmillan, 1997), pp. 147–162.
Rodgers, William. "Government under Stress. Britain's Winter of Discontent 1979", inThe Political Quarterly 55#2 (1984): 171–179.
Rogers, Chris. "Economic policy and the problem of sterling under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan", inContemporary British History 25#3 (2011): 339–363.
Rosen, Greg.Dictionary of Labour Biography (Politico's Publishing, 2001).
Rosen, Greg.Old Labour to New (Politico's Publishing, 2005).
Shepherd, John. "The Fall of the Callaghan Government, 1979", inHow Labour Governments Fall: From Ramsay Macdonald to Gordon Brown (London: Palgrave Macmillan UK, 2013). 113–140.
Shepherd, John.Crisis? what crisis?: the Callaghan government and the British winter of discontent (Manchester University Press, 2013).
Silverwood, James, and Peter Wolstencroft. "The Ruskin Speech and Great Debate in English education, 1976–1979: A study of motivation", inBritish Educational Research Journal 49.4 (2023): 766–781 on Callaghan's speech at Ruskin College, Oxford, in October 1976.online
Sked, Alan; Cook, Chris.Post-War Britain: A Political History (4th edn., 1993), pp. 312–328.
Thomas, James. "'Bound in by history': The Winter of Discontent in British politics, 1979–2004", inMedia, Culture & Society 29#2 (2007): 263–283.
Turner, Alwyn.Crisis? What Crisis?: Britain in the 1970s (2013), pp. 181–204.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_(St_Edwards_Crown).svg)
.jpg)
.svg)
.svg)
