Thatcher hopes for greater world role
The Prime Minister said last might that she wanted “an unusually large” majority on June 9 to give her the authority to play an increasingly prominent role in world affairs.
On the eve of her departure for the Williamsburg economic summit Mrs Thatcher said she saw no dangers in a landslide victory. Speaking to reporters on her campaign coach at Newbury racecourse, she said: “We have to win by a large enough majority to hold the Parliament for five years. There is so much at stake internationally.”
Earlier in Reading she said: “We want a bumper result to show the world that our country is behind the policies of this Government to enable us to extend our leadership to do more in Europe and more in the rest of the world.”
Questioned about this remark Mrs Thatcher said that apart from Mr Pierre Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, whose period in office had been interrupted, she had been in power longer than any of her counterparts who would be at the Williamsburg summit,
“Already one feels oneself taking a more forceful leadership role because of the combination of one's own style and one's own experience.”
Asked whether she relished it she said: “I find it comes naturall.” She said that Chancellor Schmidt and President Giscard used to take the lead in Europe automatically. “All of a sudden both of those go and you get a very different pattern as to who is likely to take the most forceful lead in discussions.”
Mrs Thatcher said she hoped the general message that would come out of Williamsburg would be “good news for everyone.” There was a world recovery in progress.