Urban Problems since 1979: The Conservative Approach

This chapter will focus on the general approach which post-1979 Conservative governments adopted towards urban regeneration. We will cover the following themes: • The general ideas which informed urban policy during the premiership of Margaret Thatcher. This will entail a general discussion of Thatcherism. The state of Britain's cities in 1979 and the nature of urban problems as they evolved during the 1980s. The key themes which the Conservatives stressed in their attempt to translate theory into the practice of urban regeneration. In particular we will be concerned with how a 'free-market' approach affected the definition of urban regeneration and led to the prioritorisation of urban economic regeneration and the domination of a strategy of property-led regeneration.