The UK lost one of its greatest Prime Ministers today with the passing of Margaret Thatcher. She was a force to be reckoned with and did something that her predecessors did not do, she stood up for her country. She inherited a country that lacked order and general pride in itself and over a number of years, she restored that pride.
Not only did Baroness Thatcher shape the UK, she also did other things such as the cleaning of all public buildings, the ending of currency controls, people forget that only thirty years, if you went in holiday outside the UK, you could only take £50 in foreign currency!
The Baroness also kept the Falkland Islands British, at the request of the islanders. She stood up against the unions and that is something that will be her legacy, along with enabling the ordinary people to become shareholders and also to own their own homes. Britain became a share owning, home owning society, which it still is. One reform that was reversed was the Poll Tax, something that was very fair so that everyone paid their way for the public services they used.
When the Baroness left Downing Street in 1990, she became a peer, she was recognised by The Queen as she was given the Order of the Garter and also became a member of the Order of Merit. Both in the gift of the Monarch.
In "retirement" the Baroness became frail and required round the clock care. Although she was either loved and loathed, the one thing the Baroness was and always will be, is the greatest peacetime Prime Minister the UK has ever had.
RIP Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven, Lady of the Garter, Order of Merit, Privy Counsellor, Member of Parliament, First Lord of the Treasury.
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