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Thomas Balogh (1905–1985) had a conspiratorial
nature and deliberately kept to the shadows so that his substantial
role in political life has been little known. His predictions were
usually right and he looked at economic and political issues from
unconventional angles, but he was an exasperating man who thrived
on controversy. He made many enemies and had numerous fallings-out,
especially with civil servants, and this affected the way his advice
was perceived.
… This first and only biography
covers his life and work: from his youth in Budapest, to his coming
to Britain in 1930 and being taken up by Keynes; his advance to
being a well known if highly controversial political economist;
his reputation as a brilliant though eccentric don at Balliol College,
Oxford; his burgeoning interest in politics; and the time of his
greatest influence as economic advisor to his close friend Harold
Wilson.
… Balogh’s
interests in North Sea Oil and Gas exploitation and his criticism
of governmental failure to exact higher revenue from the oil companies
is documented and the analysis is a counterbalance to the official
history. June Morris’s interpretation of Balogh’s relationship
with Harold Wilson and Marcia Williams and, more particularly and
perhaps more controversially, the relationship between Wilson and
Williams, does not match those contained in the memoirs of Bernard
Donoughue and Joe Haines. And there are correctives to some of the
myths surrounding Wilson’s leadership of the Labour Party
and his Prime Ministership.
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Acknowledgements
List of Interviewees
Budda and Pest – Two Hungarian Economists
Introduction: A Talented but Volcanic Personality
1. Early Days
2. Settling in the West
3. The War Effort
4. A Don at Balliol
5. ‘To avoid the post-war misery’: The Attlee
Government
6. Development Economics
7. Wilson and the Leadership Struggle
8. At No. 10: Battles and the Civil Service
9. At No 10: Battles and Policies
10. The Fight for North Sea Oil
11. Minister of State
12. Final Years
Epilogue: A Premier Economic Scholar
Notes and Abbreviations
Bibliography
Index
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“The author successfully conveys the atmosphere of Whitehall
in those troubled years, and captures the flavour of the times with
uncanny accuracy.” Anthony Howard
“June Morris has carefully and correctly assessed Balogh’s
influence on British politics in general and the Labour Party and
Harold Wilson and his circle in particular. She has also examined
Balogh’s standing as an Oxford academic and his economic ideas,
many of which were in advance of their time, in particular his views
of developmental economics. Good use is made of her privileged access
to Lord Balogh’s private papers and diaries, deposited at
Balliol College, Oxford, which have not yet been made available
to researchers. The author’s unlocking of their wealth of
information is most exciting.” Dr M. D. Kandiah, Centre
for Contemporary British History, Institute of Historical Research,
University of London
“Morris writes well about their relationship during Tommy’s
years as the Prime Minister’s economic adviser and gives one
of the more balanced accounts of life in Downing Street at the time
… During all his time in Government, at first in Downing Street and
later in the energy Department, Tommy played an active role in the
development of policy on North Sea oil. His overriding aim was always
to maximise the benefits accruing to the national economy from this
new resource and to prevent the international oil companies from
creaming off more than their due share of the wealth extracted from
below the seabed. Tommy could legitimately take some credit for
the favourable economic situation which later underpinned the Thatcher
governments of the 1980s.
… Aside from these
weighty issues of national policy, it is clear from my own and others’
experience, that Tommy was a gifted teacher whose insights illuminated
parts which other tutors couldn’t reach. He was also a man
who, though he made a lot of enemies, enjoyed the respect and friendship
– and often the affection – of many talented people
in public and academic life. He was a many-sided man and this book
does him full justice.” Balliol College Record |
Publication Details
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Hardback ISBN: |
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978-1-84519-153-5 |
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Page Extent / Format: |
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272 pp. / 229 x 152 mm |
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Release Date: |
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March 2007 |
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Illustrated: |
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No |
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Hardback Price: |
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£39.50 / $67.50 |
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| This book can be ordered online or by telephone. |
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For the UK and Rest of the World:
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tel. 44 (0)1524-68765 |
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tel. (1) 503 287-3093 or (800) 944-6190 |
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For Canada:
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tel. (1) 800-565-9523 |
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