I read and enjoyed Ian Jack’s article (Scilly, where the first PM to show his knees found happiness, 28 May) about Harold Wilson’s lifestyle, reputation and legacy. However, there is also a more generous perspective. The fact remains that, despite a minuscule majority in the 1964 election, Wilson’s government from 1964 to 1970 did introduce the odd important change or two.
Among other things, his government started the Open University; got legislation through on comprehensive education; introduced the first groundbreaking Race Relations Act; resisted the UK’s involvement in the Vietnam war; constructed more than 250,000 homes per year, about half of which were council (and improved their space and amenity standards); and, by the way, there was also the new towns programme.
What’s more, his governments introduced the Rent Act – which extended security of tenure and stopped the harassment of tenants; extended and improved safety regulations for workers; introduced the Employers’ Liability Act; abolished capital punishment; decriminalised homosexuality; introduced the abortion law; extended the franchise to 18-year-olds; set up 30 new polytechnics and expanded university education; enabled the raising of the school leaving age and, for part of that time, coped with a majority of one.
The Wilson budgets also gave priority to increasing investment and spending on education, health and personal social services as well as pensions and social security. An exhaustive list would be too boring.
Such a pity about that lack of an “ideological legacy” quoted from Roy Jenkins. I know which sort I’d prefer.
Judy Bernstein Downey
London
• I think Ian Jack is selling Harold Wilson short. No, he was no Aneurin Bevan or Clement Attlee – it was a different era – but he did change things for the better. He was a pragmatist, but it was a pragmatism based on ideology. The Open University that he introduced certainly changed my life and those of many others, and he stood up to the Americans by not getting involved militarily in the Vietnam war. Would that leaders of the recent past had heeded his wisdom.
Wilson was more than the sum of his parts. His legacy is continuing, eg in the form of the EU referendum, perhaps not such a good example.
Claire Sullivan
Rochdale
• Join the debate – email guardian.letters@theguardian.com
