Negotiating Credibility: Britain and the International Monetary Fund, 1956–1976

Contemporary European History

Volumn 17, Issue 4, 2008, Pages 545-566

  Clift, Ben ^a   Tomlinson, Jim ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK   (United Kingdom)

^b UNIVERSITY OF DUNDEE   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 69849116842     PISSN: 09607773     EISSN: 14692171     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1017/S0960777308004700     Document Type: Article

References (129)

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4. The best short summary is B. Eichengreen, Globalizing Capital: A History of the International Monetary System (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996), ch. 4. Much more detailed are K. Horsefield, The International Monetary Fund 1945-65: Twenty Years of International Monetary Co-operation (Washington, DC: IMF, 1969); M. de Vries, The International Monetary Fund 1966-1971: The System under Stress, 2 vols (Washington, DC: IMF, 1976); M. de Vries, The International Monetary Fund, 1972-78: Co-operation on Trial (Washington, DC: IMF, 1985); H. James, International Monetary Co-operation since Bretton Woods (Washington, DC: IMF, 1996).
5. R. Solomon, The International Monetary System, 1945-1976: An Insider's View (New York: Harper & Row, 1977), ch. 5.
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11. Burk and Cairncross, Goodbye; M. Harmon, The British Labour Government and the 1976 IMF Crisis (London: Palgrave, 1997); Hickson, IMF Crisis; de Vries, International Monetary Fund 1972-78 M. Crawford, ‘High-Conditionality Lending: the UK Case’, in J. Williamson, ed., IMF Conditionality (Washington, DC: Institute for International Economics, 1985).
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14. Gold, Standby.
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16. IMF Archives (hereafter IMF), Staff Memoranda (hereafter SM), 68/128.
17. IMF, UK Country files, 1760, Box # 32, File # 5, David Finch to the Managing Director ‘United Kingdom Consultation under standby arrangement’, 16 July 1968.
18. ‘IMF: Statement by Managing Director on Procedures for Reviews of External policies’, The National Archives, Kew (hereafter TNA), T354/226; IMF Executive Board Minutes (hereafter EBM), 31 Oct 1973.
19. Rawlinson to Littler, TNA, T354/226, 12 Sept. 1973. See also TNA, T354/226 Mrs. Hedley-Miller to Mitchell, ‘Visit of the IMF Representatives 22 and 23 November 1973’, 27 Nov. 1973.
20. Note to D. Ricketts 8 May 1959, TNA, T236/5740.
21. C.W. Fogarty to D Mitchell, 21 Dec 1973, TNA, T233/2950.
22. ‘IMF Drawings Against Decreases in Sterling Balances’, TNA, T236/5737, 4 May 1956.
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24. Kunz, Economic Diplomacy, 102, 113-14.
25. Foreign Office to Washington ‘IMF Stand-by’, TNA, T236/5737, 8 Nov. 1956.
26. IMF, EBM 56/59 10 Dec. 1956, 5.
27. Statement by Harold Macmillan, 561 H. C. Deb., 5s, cols. 1052-8, 4 Dec. 1956.
28. H. C. Deb., 5s, col. 327, 18 Dec. 1956.
29. H. C. Deb., 5s, col. 56, 16 Feb. 1957; 5s., 31 Jan. 1957.
30. Washington to Foreign Office, TNA, T236/5738, 14 Dec 1956
31. ‘Draft letter to Biggs-Davison’, TNA, T236/5379 17 Feb. 1957; ‘Conditions for Fund Drawings’, Washington to Foreign Office., 18 Feb. 1957.
32. Comments by L. Rasminsky, IMF, EBM 57/10, 27 Feb. 1957, 13-15.
33. IMF, EBM 57/59, 16 Dec. 1957, 2-14.
34. IMF, EBM 58/11, 7 March 1958
35. IMF, EBM 58/59, 19 Dec. 1958, 3-16.
36. P. Burnham, ‘The Politicisation of Monetary Policy-Making in Post-War Britain’, British Politics, 2 (2007), 395-419.
37. Note to D. Ricketts, TNA, T236/5740, 8 May 1959.
38. Letter to A.W. France, TNA, T236/5740, ? June 1959.
39. Radcliffe Committee on the Working of the Monetary System, Report, Cmd 827, 1959, 247.
40. IMF, EBM, 4 Aug. 1961.
41. IMF., 23.
42. H. C. Deb., 5s, cols. 787-8, 7 Nov. 1961.
43. H. C. Deb., 5s, cols 173-4, 14 Nov. 1961. For discussion of this episode see A. Booth, ‘Inflation, Expectations and the Political Economy of Conservative Britain, 1951-1964’, Historical Journal, 43 (2000), 844.
44. Samuel Brittan seems to have invented this term see S. Brittan, The Treasury under the Tories (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1964), ch. 7. For recent discussions see H. Pemberton, Policy Learning and British Governance in the 1960s (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2004), and G. O'Hara, From Dreams to Disillusionment: Economic and Social Planning in the 1960s (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2007).
45. J. Tomlinson, ‘Inventing “decline”: The Falling Behind of the British Economy in the Postwar Period’, Economic History Review, 49 (1996), 731-57; A. Ringe, N. Rollings and R. Middleton, Economic Policy under the Conservative, 1951-1964 (London: HMSO, 2004), 39-42.
46. S. Brittan, Steering the Economy: The Role of the Treasury (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1971), 233; Ringe et al., Economic Policy; N. Tiratsoo and J. Tomlinson, The Conservatives and Industrial Efficiency, 1951-64: Thirteen Wasted Years? (London: Routledge, 1998), ch. 2.
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48. Per Jacobsson to Selwyn Lloyd, TNA, T236/6723, 9 March 1962.
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50. ‘IMF Standby’, TNA, T236/6723, n.d but ?April 1962.
51. IMF, EBM, 29 July 1963 (afternoon meeting), 7.
52. IMF, EBM, 29 July 1963 (morning meeting), 3-4.
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54. IMF, EBM, 29 July 2007 (morning meeting), 6.
55. ‘Mins of meeting 7 May 1964 re draft Statement of Intent’, TNA, T311/276.
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57. ‘IMF: UK Consultations 1964 Final Statement by Friedman 12 May 1964’, TNA, T277/1440.
58. IMF, EBM, 27 July 1964, 11, 19, 25.
59. IMF, EBM, 28 Oct 1964, 23-4.
60. IMF., 24.
61. Telegram Foreign Office to Washington, ‘The UK drawing from the IMF’, TNA, PREM 13/3151.
62. April 1965.
63. IMF, Archive Executive Board Series (hereafter EBS), /65/74, 2-3.
64. IMF, EBM/65/25, 23-4, EBM/65/26; Telegram, Sir P. Dean from Washington to Foreign Office, ‘IMF: UK Drawing’, TNA, PREM 13/3151, 29 April 1965.
65. Letter from Schweitzer to the UK Chancellor, TNA, T230/800, 14 July 1965.
66. Mr Hubback to Mr Walker on ‘IMF Informal Consultations’, Letter from Schweitzer to the UK Chancellor., 8 July 1965. See also Telegram Sir P. Dean in Washington to the Foreign Office, TNA, T230/800, 6 Jan. 1966.
67. P. Brown to Workman, ‘The IMF Visit in December’, TNA, T230/800, 25 Nov. 1965 (emphasis added).
68. Mr Hubback to Mr Walker on ‘IMF Informal Consultations’.
69. Workman memo to Hubback ‘IMF Visit: Balance of payments’, TNA, T230/800, 26 Nov. 1965
70. ‘Note for the Record on IMF consultations by D. Hubback’, TNA, T230/800, 7 Dec. 1965.
71. P. Brown to Workman ‘The IMF Visit in December’, TNA, T230/800, 25 Nov. 1965.
72. Mr. Workman ‘IMF Consultations: Balance of Payments’, TNA, T230/801, 4 May 1966.
73. Workman memo to Hubback ‘IMF Visit: Balance of payments’.
74. ‘United Kingdom-1966 Article VIII Consultations: Preliminary List of Questions’, TNA, T230/720.
75. ‘IMF: United Kingdom Consultations 1966’, TNA, T312/1632, 27 April 1966.
76. Mr. Workman ‘IMF Consultations: Balance of Payments’, TNA, T230/801, 4 May 1966.
77. Quotes from ‘Balance of payments’ line in Article 8 consultations, TNA, T230/720.
78. Earlier drafts of Letter of Intent-apparently by WA (William Armstrong), TNA, T326/730, no date.
79. Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By Arrangement: Conversation with Mr Goode,’ IMF, Country Files: United Kingdom, File 1760, box 32, 22 Nov. 1967.
80. Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode, November
81. and 22 1967’, Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode., 22 Nov. 1967.
82. ‘Personal message from Schweitzer to the Chancellor’, TNA, PREM 13/3151, 22 Nov. 1967.
83. ‘Personal message from Chancellor to Schweitzer’, Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode., 23 Nov. 1967.
84. ‘United Kingdom-Stand-By Arrangement’, EBS/67/277, 29 Nov. 1967, 1.
85. Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode., 2.
86. EBM/67/97, 18-21.
87. ‘PM's personal minute to the Chancellor on the adjournment debate on the IMF loan’, TNA, PREM 13/3151, 4 Dec. 1967.
88. Brief for Ministers by P.R. Baldwin, ‘What “strings” or conditions have been attached to the credits from foreign Central Banks and the IMF standby?’, Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode.,1 Dec. 1967.
89. ‘PM's personal minute to the Chancellor on the adjournment debate on the IMF loan’, Frank Southard Memo for files ‘Proposed UK Stand-By: Conversations with Mr Goode., 4 Dec. 1967.
90. EBS/68/86, 26 March 1968.
91. Hubback to Goldman, ‘UK Forecasts and the Fund/OECD February Consultations’, TNA, T312/2119, 25 Jan. 1968.
92. Statement by Richard Goode ‘IMF Consultations: Final Session’, TNA, T312/2120, 27 Feb. 1968.
93. Andrew Graham to Mr Halls on ‘Commitments to the IMF’,TNA, PREM 13/3151, 26 July 1968.
94. Memorandum from Richard Goode to the Managing Director, ‘United Kingdom-Consultations under the standby arrangement’, IMF, CF, UK Country files, 1760, Box # 32, File # 5, 10 July 1968.
95. ‘United Kingdom-Review under standby arrangement’, EBS/68/342, 30 Dec. 1968, 20.
96. Memorandum from Richard Goode to the Managing Director., 21.
97. ‘IMF UK Standby. Statement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the House of Commons after questions on 23 June 1969’, TNA, PREM 13/3151.
98. ‘Memorandum of Understanding’, TNA, PREM 13-3151, 22 May 1969; ‘Memorandum of Understanding’, IMF, Country Files: United Kingdom, # 1760, Box 32, 3 May 1969.
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105. De Vries, International Monetary Fund 1972-78, 322; Harmon, British Labour Government, 65-9.
106. Harmon, British Labour Government, 99.
107. J. M. Bridgeman to Lavelle, Littler, ‘IMF Letter of Intent’,TNA, T233/2950, 12 May 1975.
108. Rawlinson ‘Possible IMF Drawing: Meeting with Witteveen’, TNA, T371/23 31, Aug. 1975.
109. British Labour Government.
110. Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St, TNA, PREM 16/348 28, Oct. 1975.
111. Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St.
112. Littler, ‘IMF Drawing’, Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St., 29 Oct. 1975.
113. Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St.
114. ‘Note of a working dinner between Chancellor and Witteveen at No 11 Downing Street 3 Nov. 1975’, TNA, T371/23.
115. Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St.
116. Henley to Mitchell ‘External use of public expenditure figures’, Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St., 4 Nov. 1975.
117. Miss J. E. Court to Mr Anson ‘Fund Drawing: public expenditure’, Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St., 12 Nov. 1975.
118. ‘Note of a Meeting in the House of Commons 5 Nov. 1975’, TNA, PREM 16/348.
119. ‘NLW(?) to Prime Minister’, TNA, PREM 16/827, 19 Dec. 1975.
120. C.W. France, ‘Mr. Witteveen's call on the Chancellor’, TNA, T371/23, 20 Nov. 1975.
121. A. Graham to Mr Stowe ‘Letter to the IMF’, TNA, PREM 16/348, 21 Nov. 1975 (emphasis in original).
122. ‘NLW (?) to Prime Minister 18 Dec. 1975’, TNA, PREM 16/827.
123. Healey to Witteveen ‘Letter of Application’, Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St., 18 Dec. 1975.
124. Note of a Meeting at 10 Downing St.
125. Telegram Littler to France & Callaghan, ‘IMF Drawing’, TNA, PREM 16/827, 16 Dec. 1975.
126. Healey to Witteveen ‘Letter of Application’, TNA, PREM 16/827, 18 Dec. 1975.
127. Healey to Wilson, ‘IMF Applications’, Telegram Littler to France & Callaghan., 2 Jan. 1976.
128. Telegram UK Director IMF Ryrie ‘IMF Drawing’, Telegram Littler to France & Callaghan., 31 Dec. 1975.
129. Burk and Cairncross, Goodbye Great Britain, 228.