More Thatcher archive material released

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LONDON, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once considered arming police during the 1981 riots, recently released archival material indicated.

The then-prime minister's personal file on the riots indicated she was warned in a classified Home Office report that "spontaneous disorder" was likely among the country's ethnic populations, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

Historians consider the 1981 riots the worst civil disturbance in Britain since 1919, and had nothing comparable until the riots last summer.

At the time of the 1981 riots, Britain was in recession and unemployment was high, especially among the young, and black and Asian populations. Riots in Brixton, south London, lasted several days. Rioting also broke out in Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds and other English cities during the summer.

The file offers a detailed picture of how Thatcher responded, including discussions with Home Secretary Willie Whitelaw, the Telegraph said.

The records indicate Thatcher and Whitelaw discussed how better to equip police and briefly considered sending in troops. However, they agreed that using the army "could not be contemplated," preferring to arm the police.

The records also showed that showed that Geoffrey Howe -- Thatcher's chancellor of the exchequer among other things -- warned the prime minister of the need "not to over-commit scarce resources to Liverpool."

However, Howe told the BBC Friday he didn't recall making that argument to Thatcher and claimed he was partly responsible for introducing "enterprise zones" to help revive the area.

Howe said he didn't think the archival material accurately reflected his conversations in 1981 over the future of regeneration in Liverpool.

"I don't recall how that argument got into the discussion at all," he said. "It certainly doesn't sound very considerate."