Ministerial broadcast

A Ministerial Broadcast, also known as a Prime Ministerial Broadcast or Ministerial Statement is a televised address to the British public, usually given by the incumbent Prime Minister or other senior Cabinet Minister in times of national crisis. The BBC and other public service broadcasters must give the government air time if the circumstances are seen to be of sufficient importance, and requests from opposition leaders must also be considered.^[1]

History

1950s

The first Ministerial Broadcast was made by Prime Minister Anthony Eden on 27 April 1956, and broadcast on the BBC. It came several months after Eden's Conservative Party won the 1955 general election, which was the first time an election had received significant coverage on television. The address was different to a Party Political Broadcast, as the opposition parties were not allocated air-time as well. This was acceptable for non-controversial topics – the broadcast in April addressed the visit of Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolai Bulganin – but in October 1956 Eden made a second televised speech relating to the Suez Crisis, to which the Leader of the Opposition Hugh Gaitskell demanded a reply. The BBC's guidelines on Ministerial Broadcasts had been published in 1947, and stated that:

They should deal with facts, explain legislation approved by parliament, or appeal for public co-operation.^[2]

If the opposition disagreed in any way with the government's broadcast (as Gaitskell did), they could ask permission to air a reply. In the case of the Suez Crisis, Eden refused to let Gaitskell give a reply, as he believed that the country should be united in times of conflict, and it would damage troops' morale if the government's efforts were put into question. The BBC Governors were then required to intervene, siding with Gaitskell, who was given permission to broadcast a reply. The Government were angry with the BBC's decision (especially as the BBC had earlier refused to let Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies make a radio address in support of Eden due to fears of bias), and Eden threatened to cut the BBC's funding by £1 million, but after a protest from the Director-General of the BBC Ian Jacob and Chairman of the BBC Alexander Cadogan, the threat was eventually dropped.^[2][1]

Eden resigned as Prime Minister in January 1957 due to his poor handling of the Suez Crisis,^[3] and was succeeded by fellow Conservative Harold Macmillan. On 31 August 1959, Macmillan was joined by US President Dwight D. Eisenhower for a live television debate, the first of its kind. Eisenhower was on a tour of Europe, and discussed the need for global peace, as well as the Anglo-US relationship. There were initial concerns from Labour that the broadcast would affect their chances at the next general election, but these were withdrawn and the broadcast went ahead as planned.^[4]

1960s

After Labour defeated the Conservatives (then led by Alec Douglas-Home) in the 1964 general election, the new Prime Minister Harold Wilson inherited a large deficit. Combined with a less-competitive economy, and a move away from using the pound as a reserve currency, the decision was taken in 1967 to reduce the exchange rate for the US dollar (which was at that time fixed) by 14% from $2.80 to $2.40 per pound. A statement was released on 18 November 1967 by Chancellor of the Exchequer James Callaghan explaining the reduction, as well as outlining a 2.5% rise in interest rates and cuts to the defence budget. The next day, Wilson made a televised broadcast to defend his decision, stating that:

From now on, the pound abroad is worth 14% or so less in terms of other currencies. That doesn't mean, of course, that the pound here in Britain, in your pocket or purse or in your bank, has been devalued.^[5]

Wilson was widely mocked for his statement, and met fierce opposition by parliamentarians,^[6] including members of his own cabinet, such as Callaghan (who resigned from his post soon after), and his deputy George Brown.^[5][7]

Conservative leader Edward Heath later gave a reply, accusing the government of failing to safeguard the nation's money.^[7]

1970s

Heath subsequently won the 1970 general election, but by 1973 he was facing constant industrial action by coal miners over pay. This led to measures to ration electricity, including implementing a three-day week. He was unable to resolve the mineworkers' dispute, and announced his intent to call a general election in a televised broadcast on 7 February 1974, stating:

This time the strife has got to stop. Only you can stop it. It is time for you to speak, with your vote.^[8]

Heath encouraged the mineworkers to pause the strike for the three-week campaign period, but he was not able to persuade them and they continued the strike as planned. Harold Wilson was re-elected at the February election, and agreed a 'National Plan for Coal' to invest more in coalfields, stopping further industrial action.^[8] Former Chancellor James Callaghan succeeded Wilson as Prime Minister in 1976, but lost the government's majority on his first day in office.^[9] Amid rising inflation and unemployment, Callaghan made a televised broadcast on 7 September 1978. It was widely expected that he would call an early general election,^[10] but in reality he chose to stay on for the full five-year term. He said that:

The government must and will continue to carry out policies that are consistent, determined, that don't chop or change and that brought about the present recovery in our fortunes.^[11]

His speech was strongly criticised by opposition leaders, with Liberal leader David Steel and Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher accusing Callaghan of "running scared".^[11]

Callaghan was eventually forced to call an election on 28 March 1979, after he lost a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons by a margin of one vote. This came after a series of strikes and economic unrest dubbed the Winter of Discontent, which severely damaged the government's popularity. The next day, he made a second statement defending the government's record, and officially announcing the general election.^[9][12] Opposition leader Margaret Thatcher made a response on 2 April (rescheduled from 31 March after the death of Airey Neave), ridiculing Callaghan's speech and encouraging the public to vote for her party at the election, which she went on to win.^[13][14]

1980s

Margaret Thatcher did not give any further Ministerial Broadcasts in her time as Prime Minister, even in times of national crisis such as the Falklands War. In 1987 she was encouraged to give a broadcast about the spread of HIV/AIDS by Health Secretary Norman Fowler, but refused on the grounds of "bad taste".^[15][16]

1990s

On 17 January 1991, John Major (who had succeeded Thatcher as Prime Minister the previous year) gave a broadcast about the decision to send British troops to fight in the Gulf War as part of Operation Desert Storm.^[17][18]

Major also gave a broadcast after signing the Downing Street Declaration on 15 December 1993, which affirmed the right of self-determination for the island of Ireland. In his statement, he said that Northern Ireland needed to:

Put the poison of history behind us. We cannot go on spilling blood in the name of the past. We must all have the courage to look to the future. The time to choose peace is long overdue. But only the men of violence can decide whether they will talk instead of bomb, discuss instead of murder.^[19]

Recent broadcasts

Iraq War

There have been three ministerial broadcasts since the turn of the century.^{[citation needed]} After Labour's landslide victory in the 1997 general election, Tony Blair became Prime Minister. Blair made his first and only televised broadcast at 10.00pm on 20 March 2003. In his address, he announced that British troops had been sent to fight in the Iraq War:^[20]

On Tuesday night I gave the order for British forces to take part in military action in Iraq.

Tonight British servicemen and women are engaged from air, land and sea.

Their mission: to remove Saddam Hussein from power and disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction.

I know that this course of action has produced deep divisions of opinion in our country but I know also the British people will now be united in sending our armed forces our thoughts and prayers - they are the finest in the world and their families and all of Britain can have great pride in them.^[21]

COVID-19 pandemic

The next broadcast was made 17 years later by Boris Johnson, on 23 March 2020.^[a] In his speech, Johnson announced a nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the public ordered to stay at home and only leave for essential purposes:^[22]

From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction - you must stay at home.

Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households...

...The people of this country will rise to that challenge.

And we will come through it stronger than ever.

We will beat the coronavirus and we will beat it together.

And therefore I urge you at this moment of national emergency to stay at home, protect our NHS and save lives.^[23]

His broadcast was shown at 8.30pm on BBC One, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Sky News and the BBC News Channel, as well as on streaming service Amazon Prime, and attained overnight viewing figures of over 27 million, making one of the most watched programmes in the history of British television.^[24]

Johnson made a second broadcast on 10 May 2020 to announce the easing of lockdown measures in England, but this was met by a chorus of disapprovals from the leaders of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.^[25]

List of Prime Ministerial Broadcasts, Statements and Speeches

Prime Minister	Date	Subject
Keir Starmer	5 July 2024	On the goals of the premiership
Rishi Sunak	5 July 2024	Farewell address
	22 May 2024	Announcing a general election to be held on the 4th of July
	1 March 2024	On political and religious extremism
	25 Oct. 2022	On the goals of the premiership
Liz Truss	25 Oct. 2022	Farewell address
	20 Oct. 2022	Announcing the resignation of the premiership
	8 Sep. 2022	On the death of Queen Elizabeth II
	6 Sep. 2022	On the goals of the premiership
Boris Johnson	6 Sep. 2022	Farewell address
	7 July 2022	Announcing the resignation of the premiership
	24 Feb. 2022	On the Russian Invasion of Ukraine
	12 Dec. 2021	On the coronavirus vaccination booster program
	9 April 2021	On the death of HRH, Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh
	4 Jan. 2021	Announcing a national lockdown over a new coronavirus strain
	22 Sep. 2020	Announcing a new coronavirus strategy for the upcoming winter season
	10 May 2020	Announcing a national lockdown exit strategy for the coronavirus pandemic
	27 April 2020	On returning from hospital following a coronavirus infection
	23 March 2020	On the coronavirus pandemic
	31 Jan. 2020	On the withdrawal of Britain from the European Union
	13 Dec. 2019	On the results of the general election
	6 Nov. 2019	Announcing a general election on 12 December
	2 Sep. 2019	On the Suspension of Parliament
	24 July 2019	On the goals of the premiership
Theresa May	24 July 2019	Farewell address
	24 May 2019	Announcing the resignation of the Premiership
	2 April 2019	Announcing an extension of the Brexit deadline
	20 March 2019	On the Brexit negotiations
	16 Jan. 2019	On the results of the vote of no confidence
	12 Dec. 2018	On the results of the vote of no confidence
	11 Dec. 2018	Announcing a vote of no confidence
	14 Nov. 2018	Announcing a Brexit Deal
	21 Sep. 2018	On the Brexit Negotiations (Chequers Agreement)
	14 April 2018	Allied Airstrikes on Damascus and Homs
	19 June 2017	On the Finsbury Park terrorist attack
	9 June 2017	On the results of the general election
	4 June 2017	On the London Bridge terrorist attack
	24 May 2017	Announcing the raising of the UK terror threat level to critical
	23 May 2017	On the Manchester Arena terrorist attack
	18 April 2017	Announcing a general election to be held on 8 June
	22 March 2017	On the Westminster terrorist attack
	13 July 2016	On the goals of the premiership
David Cameron	13 July 2016	Farewell address
	24 June 2016	Announcing the resignation of the premiership over the results of the Brexit referendum
	20 Feb. 2016	Announcing a referendum on whether or no to leave the European Union
	14 Nov. 2015	On the Paris attacks
	13 Nov. 2015	On the killing of Jihadi John
	8 May 2015	On the results of the general election
	19 Sep. 2014	On the results of the Scottish independence referendum
	6 Dec. 2013	On the death of Nelson Mandela
	29 May 2013	On the murder of Lee Rigby
	8 April 2013	On the death of Margaret Thatcher
	22 August 2011	On the situation in Libya
	9 August 2011	On the riots and general unrest
	11 May 2010	On the goals of the premiership
Gordon Brown	11 May 2010	Announcing the resignation of the Premiership/Farewell address
	7 May 2010	On the results of the general election
	27 June 2007	On the goals of the premiership
Tony Blair	7 July 2005	On the London Underground bombings
	20 March 2003	On the war in Iraq
	7 Oct. 2001	Beginning of military operations in Afghanistan
	11 Sep. 2001	On the terrorist attacks in the United States
	26 March 1999	On the war in Kosovo
	16 Dec. 1998	Start of a US and British Bombing Campaign against Iraq
	2 May 1997	On the goals of the Premiership
John Major	2 May 1997	Farewell address
	29 April 1997	On the eve of the general election
	25 April 1997	On the upcoming general election
	12 Feb. 1996	On the situation in Northern Ireland
	17 Jan. 1991	On the war in the Gulf
Margaret Thatcher	8 June 1983	On the eve of the general election
James Callaghan	29 March 1979	Announcing a snap election
	7 Sep. 1978	On the Winter of Discontent
Harold Wilson	14 Oct. 1974	On the Labour Party manifesto
Edward Heath	7 Feb. 1974	On the eve of the general election
	13 Dec. 1973	On the three-day week
	31 Dec. 1972	On the entering of the UK into the European Common Market (European Union)
	27 Feb. 1972	On Inflation and the Miners strike
Harold Wilson	19 Nov. 1967	On the devaluing of the UK Pound Sterling
	14 Feb. 1967	On the war in Vietnam
	6 Dec. 1966	On the situation in Rhodesia
Alec Douglas-Home	22 Nov. 1963	On the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy
	19 Oct. 1963	On the goals of the premiership
Harold Macmillan	10 Jan. 1957	On the goals of the premiership
Anthony Eden	31 Oct. 1956	On the Suez Crisis
	27 April 1956	On leaving for a trip to France
Winston Churchill	7 Feb. 1952	On the death of King George VI
Clement Attlee	28 July 1948	Observance of the Opening of the Games of the XIV Olympiad
	4 July 1948	Announcing the establishment of the National Health Service
	15 August 1945	On the surrender of Japan
Winston Churchill	13 May 1945	On the five year anniversary of becoming Prime Minister
	8 May 1945	On the surrender of Germany
	26 March 1944	Report on the war
	31 August 1943	On the First Quebec Conference
	14 May 1943	On the Home Guard
	21 March 1943	On the state of the Union
	29 Nov. 1942	On recent victories at Stalingrad and El Alemein
	10 May 1942	On the Progress of the War
	15 Feb. 1942	On the Fall of Singapore
	8 Dec. 1941	On the Japanese declaration of war against the United States and Great Britain
	24 August 1941	On meeting with United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Atlantic Charter)
	22 June 1941	On the German invasion of Russia
	27 April 1941	Report on the war
	9 Feb. 1941	On the Progress of the War
	23 Dec. 1940	Message to the people of Italy
	21 Oct. 1940	Message to the people of France
	11 Sep. 1940	On the Blitz
	14 July 1940	On the Battle of Britain
	19 May 1940	On the Fall of France
Neville Chamberlain	10 May 1940	Announcing the resignation of the Premiership
	26 Nov. 1939	On the Progress of the War
	3 Sep. 1939	On the declaration of war against Germany
	27 Sep. 1938	On the Munich Agreement

Other Broadcasts

In addition to those listed above, other ministerial broadcasts were given by Cabinet ministers concerning matters such as civil defence and employment rights. Details of broadcasts are taken from the BBC's Genome Project.

Subject	Date	Minister	Ref
First Month of War	1 Oct. 1939	Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty	[26]
First Twelve Weeks of War	12 Nov. 1939	Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty	[27]
Sinking of the Graf Spee	18 Dec. 1939	Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty	[28]
Formation of the Home Guard	14 May 1940	Anthony Eden, Secretary of State for War	[29]
Meeting with Joseph Stalin	4 Jan. 1942	Anthony Eden, Foreign Secretary	[30]
The Unquiet World	6 March 1958	Duncan Sandys, Minister of Defence	[31]
Under Way	22 January 1959	Duncan Sandys, Minister of Defence	[32]
Civil Defence in the Sixties	20 September 1961	Henry Brooke, Home Secretary	[33]
Civil Defence 1962	19 September 1962	R. A. Butler, Home Secretary	[34]
Civil Defence Today	16 September 1963	Henry Brooke, Home Secretary	[35]
One Million Babies	2 June 1964	Anthony Barber, Minister of Health	[36]
The Parliamentary Commissioner	6 April 1967	Richard Crossman, Leader of the House of Commons	[37]
Resettlement of Indian Refugees from Uganda	31 August 1972	Alec Douglas-Home, Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary	[38]
Implementation of the Equal Pay Act	29 December 1975	Michael Foot, Secretary of State for Employment	[39]
The New Pension Scheme	30 March 1978	David Ennals, Secretary of State for Social Services	[40]
Brexit Referendum	24 June 2016	Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England	[41]
Reversal of the Mini-Budget	17 October 2022	Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor of the Exchequer	[42]

Budget Broadcasts

The Chancellor of the Exchequer gave a broadcast each year from 1953 to explain the budget, an economic plan that sets out the government's spending and taxation plans for the year. A representative of the main opposition party (usually the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer) would air a reply the next day, and from 1984 a spokesperson from the third-largest party in Parliament also made a response.

The broadcasts were scrapped by the BBC Trust in 2012, in favour of additional Party Political Broadcasts. The BBC defended its decision, saying that they originated from a time where filming the Budget Statement from inside the House of Commons was not possible, and the public would be able to access the information from various other outlets.^[43]

List of Budget Broadcasts

1950s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Ref
1953	16 April	R. A. Butler		Conservative	17 April	Hugh Gaitskell		Labour	[44][45]
1954	8 April				9 April				[46][47]
1955	21 April				22 April				[48][49]
1956	18 April	Harold Macmillan			19 April	Harold Wilson			[50][51]
1957	9 April	Peter Thorneycroft			10 April				[52][53]
1958	15 April	Derick Heathcoat-Amory			16 April				[54][55]
1959	7 April				8 April				[56][57]

1960s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Ref
1960	4 April	Derick Heathcoat-Amory		Conservative	5 April	Harold Wilson		Labour	[58][59]
1961	17 April	Selwyn Lloyd			18 April				[60][61]
1962	9 April				10 April	James Callaghan			[62][63]
1963	3 April	Reginald Maudling			4 April				[64][65]
1964	14 April				15 April				[66][67]
1965	6 April	James Callaghan		Labour	7 April	Edward Heath		Conservative	[68][69]
1966	3 May				4 May	Ian Macleod			[70][71]
1967	11 April				12 April				[72][73]
1968	19 March	Roy Jenkins			20 March				[74][75]
1969	15 April				16 April				[76][77]

1970s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Ref
1970	14 April	Roy Jenkins		Labour	15 April	Ian Macleod		Conservative	[78][79]
1971	30 March	Anthony Barber		Conservative	31 March	Roy Jenkins		Labour	[80][81]
1972	21 March				22 March				[82][83]
1973	6 March				7 March	Denis Healey			[84][85]
Mar 1974	26 March	Denis Healey		Labour	27 March	Robert Carr		Conservative	[86][87]
Nov 1974	12 November				13 November				[88][89]
1975	15 April				16 April	Geoffrey Howe			[90][91]
1976	6 April				7 April				[92][93]
1977	29 March				30 March				[94][95]
1978	11 April				12 April				[96][97]
Apr 1979	3 April				4 April				[98][99]
Jun 1979	12 June	Geoffrey Howe		Conservative	13 June	Denis Healey		Labour	[100][101]

1980s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Ref
1980	26 March	Geoffrey Howe		Conservative	27 March	Denis Healey		Labour	[102][103]
1981	10 March				11 March	Peter Shore			[104][105]
1982	9 March				10 March				[106][107]
1983	15 March				16 March				[108][109]
Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Date	Spokesperson	Party		Ref
1984	13 March	Nigel Lawson		Conservative	14 March	Roy Hattersley		Labour	15 March	Roy Jenkins		SDP-Liberal Alliance	[110][111][112]
1985	19 March				20 March				21 March	David Steel			[113][114][115]
1986	18 March				19 March				20 March	Roy Jenkins			[116][117][118]
1987	17 March				18 March				19 March				[119][120][121]
1988	15 March				16 March	John Smith			17 March	Alan Beith			[122][123][124]
1989	14 March				15 March				16 March			Social and Liberal Democrats	[125][126][127]

1990s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Date	Spokesperson	Party		Ref
1990	20 March	John Major		Conservative	21 March	John Smith		Labour	22 March	Alan Beith		Liberal Democrats	[128][129][130]
1991	19 March	Norman Lamont			20 March				21 March				[131][132][133]
1992	10 March				11 March				12 March				[134][135][136]
Mar 1993	16 March				17 March	Gordon Brown			18 March				[137][138][139]
Nov 1993	30 November	Kenneth Clarke			1 December				2 December				[140][141][142]
1994	29 November				30 November				1 December	Malcolm Bruce			[143][144][145]
1995	28 November				29 November				30 November				[146][147][148]
1996	26 November				27 November				28 November				[149][150][151]
1997	2 July	Gordon Brown		Labour	3 July	Michael Heseltine		Conservative	4 July				[152][153][154]
1998	17 March				18 March	Peter Lilley			19 March				[155][156][157]
1999	9 March				10 March	Francis Maude			11 March				[158][159][160]

2000s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Date	Spokesperson	Party		Ref
2000	21 March	Gordon Brown		Labour	22 March	Michael Portillo		Conservative	23 March	Matthew Taylor		Liberal Democrats	[161][162][163]
2001	7 March				8 March				9 March				[164][165][166]
2002	17 April				18 April	Michael Howard			19 April				[167][168][169]
2003	9 April				10 April				11 April				[170][171][172]
2004	17 March				18 March	Oliver Letwin			19 March	Vince Cable			[173][174][175]
2005	16 March				17 March				18 March				[176][177][178]
2006	22 March				23 March	George Osborne			24 March				[179][180][181]
2007	21 March				22 March				23 March				[182][183][184]
2008	12 March	Alistair Darling			13 March				14 March				[185][186][187]
2009	22 April				23 April				24 April				[188][189][190]

2010s

Budget	Date	Chancellor	Party		Date	Shadow Chancellor	Party		Date	Spokesperson	Party		Ref
March 2010	24 March	Alastair Darling		Labour	25 March	George Osborne		Conservative	26 March	Vince Cable		Liberal Democrats	[191][192][193]
June 2010	22 June	George Osborne		Conservative	23 June	Alastair Darling		Labour	The Liberal Democrats served in the coalition government, and did not broadcast a response to the budget during their time in office.				[194][195]
2011	23 March				23 March	Ed Balls							[196][197]

In popular culture

An episode of the BBC satirical comedy Yes, Prime Minister ("The Ministerial Broadcast") features the main character Jim Hacker preparing for his first ministerial broadcast as Prime Minister.^[198]

See also

• Royal address to the nation, a similar broadcast by the King.
• Oval Office address, a broadcast by the President of the United States
• Cadena nacional

Notes

1. Johnson's predecessors, Theresa May, David Cameron and Gordon Brown did not give any ministerial broadcasts during their periods in office.^{[citation needed]}

References

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38. SYND 31-8-72 A STATEMENT BY DOUGLAS-HOME ON THE PLIGHT OF THE UGANDAN ASIAN REFUGEES.
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41. The EU Referendum - FULL Results - BBC.
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External links

• Anthony Eden's broadcast on the Suez Crisis, at British Pathé
• A Budget Broadcast by Roy Jenkins, at British Pathé
• Transcript of Boris Johnson's Coronavirus broadcast on 23 March 2020, at GOV.UK
• Transcript of Tony Blair's Iraq War broadcast on 20 March 2003, at the BBC