1984 Cabinet papers released
The official records of the Prime Minister's Office and Cabinet Office from 1984 have been released by the National Archives.
1984 was a very busy time for the government domestically and abroad. In these papers you can read about many international challenges such as the Cabinet’s response to Ronald Reagan’s “Star Wars” defence initiative, Anglo-Libyan relations following the shooting of PC Yvonne Fletcher, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s first meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev and negotiations with China on the future of Hong Kong.
There was also a lot to deal with at home as the miners’ strike began in March of that year, levels of public spending were at the forefront of economic policy discussions and the Brighton hotel bombing happened in October during the Conservative party conference.