The liberation of the nation

Today’s young entrepreneurs won’t remember what life was like in Mrs Thatcher’s day let alone in the years before she became Prime Minister. But if you are trying to run a small business today then you have a lot to thank her for.

When Mrs Thatcher came to power in 1979, Britain was “the sick man of Europe”. The country was run by the diktat of militant trade union leaders.

You could hardly take enough money abroad to pay for a week’s holiday on the Costa del Sol while access to finance was a massive joke – if you even wanted a mortgage you had to join a six-month waiting list.

Mrs Thatcher transformed the business environment. She welcomed new businesses and entrepreneurs capable of working hard, generating jobs and creating wealth.

It was necessary because she inherited a vast, unproductive lump of loss-making nationalised industries: steel mills, car companies, coal mines and shipyards which employed thousands of people but could not make a penny profit.

There are many obstacles to creating a successful new business. But until Mrs Thatcher came along to de-regulate and free the market, it was virtually impossible for all but the luckiest and most determined because “the State” ran the country.

Today, the obstacles can be overcome – just ask a Business Advice Service chartered accountant. In the 1970s and 1980s, they were often insuperable.

Mrs Thatcher gave us a modern, flexible, dynamic economy. She created the climate which allowed businesses to grow and prosper. If you’re in business today, you are almost certainly benefiting from the decisions she took way back in the 1980s.

And she would be the first to congratulate you on your success.

·         Cranks corner – the Government is now making it easier for nutters of all persuasions to take action against employers who refuse them time off to attend Druid festivals or Mayday celebrations. This from a Government pledged to reducing red tape to make life easier for small businesses.