Functional Analysis of Anticipatory ''It'' Lexical Bundles in Political Speeches
Abstract
This paper investigates a particular structural group of frequent word combinations referred to as ‘anticipatory it lexical bundles’. Lexical bundles are words formed that often co- occur in longer sequences. They are not idiomatic or structurally complete, but the sequences are building blocks in discourse and are so common and recurrent that the readers and listeners should pay much attention to them. The paper aims at showing and exploring structures and functions of the 'anticipatory it lexical bundles' presented in political speeches. This paper adopts Hewings and Hewings's categorization of interpersonal functions of 'anticipatory it lexical bundles'. Furthermore, the present investigation scrutinizes the interpersonal functions of 'anticipatory it lexical bundles' in the discourse of political speeches delivered by British politician 'Margaret Thatcher'. The structural and functional types of 'anticipatory it lexical bundles' found in the speeches under analysis are described and compared. The main finding of this paper indicates that there are two main interpersonal functions of lexical bundles that dominate in this domain: attitude markers and emphatics.

1.1 Lexical Bundles Lexical bundles, as a particular and relatively recent category of word combinations with a possibly formulaic status (Biber and Barbieri, 2007: 263), are coined and defined by Biber et al (1999:990). They define lexical bundles as "recurrent expressions, regardless of their idiomaticity, and regardless of their structural status" simple sequences of words that commonly co-occur in natural language use. One of the earliest studies of lexical bundles is reported by Altenberg (1998:113) who analyzed “recurrent word-combinations” in English. He shows that such combinations are “evident at all levels of linguistic organization” while the fact that they do recur as lexical units even though their grammatical structure is often incomplete obscures the distinction between lexicon and grammar.

Multi- word sequences have been studies under many a plethora of labels ''chunks'', ''clusters'', and '' extended collocations''. Multi-word expressions are an important component in language use. Scott (1996:31) refers to such expressions as clusters. Essentially, these are words which follow each other more frequently than expected by chance, helping to shape meanings in specific context and contributing to the sense of coherence in a text (Hyland, 2008:4-5). According to Biber et al (2003:73), these multi-word expressions in academic prose often serve to bridge two phrases, either two noun phrases or a noun and a verb phrase. They may also introduce a dependent clause.

On the other hand , Biber et al (1999:989) and Hyland (2008:5) agree that multi-word expressions can be regarded as extend collocations in the sense that sequences of three or more words show a statistical tendency to co-occur in a register. Some examples of these words combinations are (in the case of, it is likely to, a result of, etc.).

1.2. Characteristics of Lexical Bundles In their exhaustive study of English grammar, Biber et al. (1999) identify the most frequent ‘‘lexical bundles’’ in academic prose and conversation in the Longman Grammar of Written and Spoken English. More importantly, they refer to frequency as the most salient and defining characteristics of bundles. Frequency data have additional importance of the study of multi- word sequences because they are one reflection of the extent to which a sequence of words is stored and used as a prefabricated chunk, which higher frequency sequences more likely to be stored as unanalyzed chunks than lower frequency sequences (Biber et al, 2004: 376). The actual frequency cut-off used to identify lexical bundles is somewhat arbitrary (ibid.). However, the occurrence of the lexical bundles is varying across different genres (Hyland, 2008:7). A sequency must be used in at least five different texts to be counted as a lexical bundle, to guard against idiosyncratic uses or repetitive uses by individual speakers. In practice, this restriction has little effect, because most bundles are distributed widely across the texts in a corpus (Biber et al, 2004:376). Other features of lexical bundles become apparent when they are compared with the similar category of fixed expressions, which includes idioms and other phrasal language construction. Idiomaticity and fixedness other qualities which are frequently used to describe word combinations, can also be used to describe lexical bundles (Cortes, 2004: 400) Biber et al (1999:989) distinguish lexical bundles from idioms in the way that idioms are the most idiomatic and invariable type of multi- word items. In general, most lexical bundles are not idiomatic in meaning. They are semantically transparent and formally regular, providing the building blocks of coherent discourse (Hyland, 2008:6). Similarly, Cortes (2004:400) and Biber et al (2004:375) agree with Hyland's view in that lexical bundles have necessary functional contribution to the coherence and organization of different texts, either spoken or written. Furthermore , Biber et al (1999 : 989-990) extend their explanation saying that lexical bundles are indentified empirically , rather than intuitively as word combinations that recur most commonly in a register , and therefore, lexical bundles are usually not complete structural units , but rather fragmented phrases or clauses with new fragments embedded. Nevertheless, lexical bundles have strong grammatical correlates, which facilitate their grouping into several basic structural types.
1.3 Classification of Lexical Bundles Lexical bundles can be classified in terms of their formal linguistic aspects and their functional role in texts. The structural classification of lexical bundles in the Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English (Biber et al., 1999) has been widely used in other studies on recurrent word combinations (Cortes, 2004; Hyland, 2008). Three broad structural categories are distinguished: "NP-based," "PP-based," and "VP-based." NP-based bundles include any noun phrases with post-modifier fragments, such as'' the role of the'' or ''the way in which''. PP-based bundles refer to those starting with a preposition plus a noun-phrase fragment, such as ''at the end of'' or'' in relation to the''. With regard to VP-based bundles, any word combinations with a verb component, such as'' in order to make'' or'' was one of the'', is assigned to this category. These categories are further grouped into several structural subcategories to see more precisely how these categories are distinguished from each other. | Structural patterns | Examples | i. | Noun phrase with an of-phrase fragment | a function of the, a wide range of, aim of this study, one of the most, the aim of this, the structure of the, the effect of the, … | ii. | Prepositional phrase with embedded of-phrase fragment | as a function of, for the production of, in the case of, in the absence of, in the development of, in the presence of, with the use of, … | iii. | Other prepositional phrases (fragment) | in this paper we, in this study we, in this work we, of this study was, on the other hand, with respect to the, of the most important, … | iv. | Passive verb + prepositional phrase fragment | be used as a, can be used as, is based on the, is related to the | v. | ((Noun +) Verb phrase +) that-clause fragment | is shown that the, results suggest that the, the results show that, we show that the, we find that the | vi. | (Verb phrase +) to-clause fragment | can be used to, have been developed to, this work aims to, to be used as, was found to be | vii. | Pronoun/noun phrase + be (+…) | there is not a, this paper is to, this study was to, this work was to | viii. | Anticipatory it patterns (it + verb/adjective phrase) | it is shown that, it is possible to, it was possible to | ix. | Copula be + noun phrase | is one of the | x. | Other verb phrases | here we report the, paper we propose a, this paper presents the, this paper we present, this paper we propose | xi. | Other expressions | as well as the, as well as to, in order to get | Table (1): Structural classification of lexical bundles Lexical bundles have also been classified functionally by Biber et al(2004:384). The functions in their taxonomy refer to the meanings and purposes of the language, functions that try to provide texture or organize the discourse according to situations or contexts. The three core categories in this taxonomy are: referential bundles, text organizers, stance bundles. Stance bundles are often used to express a writer's evaluation of a proposition in terms of certainty or uncertainty (epistemic) (e.g., I don't know if, I don't think so). They can also convey the writer's attitude about proposition (obligation/directive) (e.g., it is important to, it is necessary to, that need to be, it has to be). If the writer's judgment on the ability to do something is involved, then they are grouped under "ability" (e.g., will be able to, it is difficult to, to be able to).(ibid:389) Discourse organizers are used to structure texts. They can introduce a topic (e.g., I want to talk about), elaborate on the topic (e.g., you know I mean, be taken into account, in more detail in, on the other hand, can be used to), or make inference (e.g., in the sense that, as a result of, in view of the, this is due to). In addition, a large number of the discourse organizers discovered here function to identify the focus that the writer is making.(ibid:391-393)

Referential expressions are characterized by the function of attribute specification. The first type, framing bundles, are used to specify a given attribute or condition (e.g., in terms of the, in the context of, the nature of, the existence of a). Another common type of referential bundles is quantifying expressions (e.g., per cent of the, a wide range of, the extent to which, in a number of), which qualify a proposition with expressions related to anything potentially measurable, such as size, number, amount or extent. The last subcategory of referential expressions includes place/time/text-deictic bundles (e.g., at the beginning of, at the same time).(ibid:393-396) Another framework for analyzing the bundles found by Hyland (2004:138) which is developed from classification of Biber et al., (2004). While Hyland's main categories are similar, differences necessitate modifications. Biber et al, for instance employs stance as a super-ordinate category while Hyland has folded it into a grouping in which bundles refer to either the writer or reader. Hyland's classification therefore collects bundles into the three broad foci of research, text and participants, and introduces sub-categories which specifically reflect the concerns of research writing.

Interestingly, there is also usually a correlation between structural type of bundles and the function they serve in the discourse (Biber et al , 2004: 398) ,for example, anticipatory it bundles, the subject of this paper are usually used to act metadiscourse functions(Hewings and Hewings, 2001:199-214).

1.4 Syntax of Anticipatory IT The clause-initial anticipatory it is part of a multi- word fixed word combination or bundle which can act like a frame within which the following propositional meaning could be embedded (Biber and Barbieri, 2007: 266). One of the most overt and at the same time straightforward means by which writers can express their stance toward the reader, and the content is the use of these clauses or bundles beginning with anticipatory it, a copula is, a predicative adjective or verb in passive voice (e.g., interesting, clear, necessary, shown, found) followed by a subordinate clause which is usually introduced with infinitive to or a conjunctive that.(Hewings and Hewings,2002:369). Hewings and Hewings (2001:201) see anticipatory it–clauses as an important component of the mechanism by which writers negotiate new knowledge claims and establish their standing in their disciplinary community. This dummy element has been variously called “preparatory it” (Jespersen, 1949, VII: 142), “introductory it” (Hornby, 1975: 17; Leech and Svartvik, 2002: 215), or, most commonly, “anticipatory it” (Quirk et al, 1985: 1391). The resulting sentence is thus generally seen as containing two subjects: the formal or anticipatory subject and the extraposed, postponed, logical or notional subject, i.e. the embedded clause (ibid.).

Extraposed subject is said to occur primarily in clauses that begin with an ''introductory'' or '' anticipatory '' it .In clause such as,

(1) It seemed that he would keep his word.
The subject is often taken to be that he would keep his word, with it analyzed as a dummy subject or formal subject .In other words , it occupies the place typically occupied by a grammatical subject ,but that clause contains the content of the subject (Hunston and Francis,2000:156). Similarly, Hewings and Hewings (2005:302) state that anticipatory it or extraposed it occurs in a sentence in which the subject is placed at the end and it is inserted in the normal subject position, for example, (2) It must be emphasized that the results are provisional. On the same token, Quirk et al (1985:1391) refer to the grammatical structure in the following example, (3) It was apparent that a genius had been born. as subject extraposition. They describe extraposition in terms of postponement of nominal clauses '' the subject is moved to the end of the sentence, and the normal subject position is filled by the anticipatory pronoun it''. They state that postponement is ''more usual'' for clausal subjects than the canonical position before the verb. Much of the argument in favor of extraposed subject, however, is based on transformation. In other words, the main syntactic effect of deriving it-extraposition by shifting the subject of the non-extraposed version to the end of the sentence is that of depriving the embedded clause of its subject position. With the subject being an obligatory syntactic function in most clause types, this transformation requires the insertion of a dummy element to fill the vacated subject position.(Huddleston,1984: 42) ,e.g., if (4) It is obvious he is right.
Is indeed a transformation of (5) That he is right is obvious. 1.5 Structural Classification of '' Anticipatory It Lexical Bundles'' Anticipatory it lexical bundles are of two types: those controlled by an adjective phrase, and a fewer number controlled by a verb phrase (usually in passive voice)(Biber et al ,1999:1019). 1.5.1 Anticipatory It + Adjective Phrases The patterns of this type are ‘anticipatory it + copula verb + evaluative adjective + to-infinitive or that-clause’. This syntactic construction, in which heavier constituents are placed at the end of the clause, allows writers\speakers to thematise attitudinal meaning when expressing a value judgment towards the actions(ibid: 968). Likewise, Hunston and Sinclair (2000: 189-190) propose that evaluative adjectives typically occur in patterns of a certain kind, patterns of the type mentioned at the beginning of this section such as the pattern it + link verb + adjective group + finite or non-finite clause. (6) It is important to check the success of a university's graduates on the job market. (7) It is interesting that she is never asked what he looks like. Concerning that -clause in this construction, Quirk et al (1985: 1224) state that there are three types to be distinguished. 1. That clause has indicative verb only These adjectives have to do with truth or knowledge: Apparent, evident, certain, possible, plain, obvious, implicit, likely, clear, well known, untrue, true, indubitable. (8) It is true that she never comes on time. 2. That –clause has putative should, or subjunctive verb These adjectives express concepts concerned with modality or volition: essential, fitting, appropriate, crucial, compulsory, important, vital, necessary, proper, obligatory, impossible, and imperative. (9) It is essential that the ban should be lifted tomorrow. Or (10) It is essential that the ban be lifted tomorrow. 3. That clause has indicative verb or putative should This group consists mainly of emotive adjectives, and includes a large number of participial adjectives ending in (ing): (11) It is strange that she is so late. (12) It is upsetting that she should be so late. On the same token, Biber et al (1999:673-4) provide exhaustive discussion about these types of adjectives with anticipatory it along with their different functions. Adjectival predicates with extraposed that- clauses mark a stance mark or attitude towards the proposition in the that–clause. In most cases, this predicate represents the attitude of the speaker\writer, although it is overtly attributed to that person.

Certainty adjectives are the most common adjectival predicates controlling extraposed that –clause, indicating the extent to which the speaker \writer regards the embedded proposition as certain, obvious ,likely ,possible, etc.:

(13) It is obvious that direct chilling of the udder depends as much on the thermal properties of the floor as on the air temperature.(ibid) (14) It is unlikely that any insect exceeds about twice this velocity. (ibid: 673)

The effective \evaluative adjective mark other assessments or attitudes towards the proposition in the that –clause. Some adjectives, such as appropriate , fortunate, good, great, nice, lucky, have positive connotations ;others ,such as awful bad dreadful horrible unlucky, tragic have negative connotations. Commenting on the function of these adjectives, Downing and Locke (2006:495) state that the adjective (unfortunate) expresses an evaluative attitude, (usually the speaker's) towards the content of the following clause, but because the construction has anticipatory it as subject, the stance or attitude is not directly attributed to the speaker or some other person, as occurs with complement clauses, whose subjects are referential pronouns. Other such adjectives are not strongly positive or negative, but indicate an emotional response such as surprise, interest, strange, or amusement e.g., amazing, interesting, natural, surprising, peculiar, incredible.

(15) It is horrible that he put up with Claire's nagging. (16) It is conceivable that this critical stage would be reached before temperature began to rise again in the spring (Biber et al, 1999: 673). Several evaluative adjectives can occur with an extraposed that –clause having hypothetical sense, proposing a course of action that should be followed rather than simply evaluating a proposition reported as a fact. These constructions are marked by should or subjunctive verb forms

(17) It is preferable that he marked cells should be identical in their behavior to the unmarked cells.(Biber et al, 1999:673-4)

Necessity or importance adjectives also control extraposed that – clause usually with should or an uninflected subjunctive verb form, reflecting the writer's belief that a proposed course of action is essential or important.

(18)It is essential that the two instruments should run parallel to the microscope stage (ibid: 674).

1.5.2 Anticipatory It + Verb Phrases

There are of course also variants of the anticipatory it pattern where the linking verb (mainly be, but also sometimes seem or appear) is followed by the past participle of a verb, as in

(18) It is acknowledged that two cases are insufficient (Hyland, 2008: 10).

For certain constructions which look likes introductory –it sentences there is no corresponding 'regular' construction: it seems, appears, happens, etc. Therefore, the clause following it +verb of seeming (seem \appear) and happening (happen \turn out), is obligatory extraposed: (19) It seems that you were right after all (*that you were right after all seems.) (20) It so happened that the driver lost control (*that the driver lost control happened)(Downing and Locke,2006:48) According to Biber et al (1999: 1020), most of the extraposed lexical bundles with verb predicates are passive constructions that take that – clause. The main verb in the following structures presents a kind of stance, in most cases identifying the information in that – clause as beyond dispute: (21) It should be noted that selection within a pure line offers little scope further improvement in yield. In this respect, anticipatory it constructions is used in the passive either with introducing a that- clause or introducing a to –infinitive, e.g. (22) Biologically, it may be found that there are few differences between a black African and a white Scandinavian. (23) It may be decided not to rely exclusively on fixed site missiles (Leech and savartvik, 1975: 215) Quirk et al (1985: ) note the use of comment clauses including anticipatory it such as (it is said, it is reported, it has been claimed) as hedging devices. The it- clause distances the writer from the content expressed in the following that- clause and choice of the reporting verb allows great freedom in accepting, rejecting or remaining neutral about the proposition expressed (Thompson (1994)as cited in Hewings and Hewings,2001:201).

1.6 Functional Classification of ''Anticipatory It Lexical Bundles''

Hewings and Hewings (2002:202) propose that the classification of it – clause having a metadiscourseal function used in the analysis described below. The adopted framework has four broad categories with sub- categories within each. They are as follows: Interpersonal functions of IT clauses | Sub- Categories | Example realizations | 1.Hedges | 1a. likelihood, possibility, certainly, importance, value, necessity etc. | it is likely; it seems important ;it would certainly appear | | 1.b what a writer thinks\ assumes to be \will be\was the case | it could be argued; it seems reasonable to assume; it was felt | 2. Attribute Markers | 2a. the writer feels that something is worthy to note | it is of interest to note; it is worthy pointing out; it is noteworthy | | 2b. the writer's 'attitude' | it is important ; it was interesting; it is surprising | 3.Emphatics | 3a.the writer indicates that a conclusion/deduction should be reached; that a proposition is true. | it follows; it is evident; it is apparent | | 3b.the writer strongly draws reader's attention to a point. | it is important to stress; it should be noted; it must be recognized; it is essential to understand | | 3c.the writer expresses a strong conviction of what is important/possible/necessary etc. | it is clear; it is impossible; it is safe to assume; it would be strongly desirable | 4.Attributions | 4a. specific attribution(with reference to literature) | it has been proposed(+reference) | | 4b. general attribution(no reference) | it is estimated(- reference) | Table (2) Hewings and Hewings' classification of it –clauses

1.6.1 Hedges Hedges may intentionally or unintentionally be employed in both spoken and written language since they are crucially important in communication. Hedges help speakers and writers communicate more precisely the degree of accuracy and truth in assessments (Hewings and Hewings, 2001: 203). Withhold the speaker/writer's full commitment to the content of the extraposed subject. This category 1a includes hedges in which the writer gives an indication of the degree of probability, value or necessity of the content. Realizations typically include a modal adverb. In 1b the non – factual status of a proposition is indicated by its being marked as the writer's suggestion, contention, argument, assumption.(ibid.) 1.6.2 Attitude Markers Crismore et al. (1993:53) define attitude markers in the following way: "attitude markers express writers" affective values – their attitudes towards the propositional content and/or readers rather than commitment to the truth–value. At times writers use attitude markers to show their attitudes about the style of the text or about themselves as the writers of the texts. The attitude expressed can be of many different types: expressions of surprise, of thinking that something is important, or of concession, agreement, disagreement, etc. Attitude markers express the writer's attitude towards the context of the extraposed subject. A distinction is made between those (20) in which the writer identifies information as worthy of particular attention and those (2b) which express an evaluation, indicate a value judgment or provide an assessment of expectations.(Hewings and Hewings,2001: 203). 1.6.3 Emphatics They emphasize the force or the writer's certainty in the content of the extraposed subject. We distinguish three sub-categories of emphatics. The writer may (3a) indicate that a conclusion or inference should be drawn, without mitigating this through hedging. Effectively, the reader is told that s\he, too, must reach this conclusion from the evidence provided. In (3b) the reader's attention is forcefully drawn to some point. This is distinguished from items in (2a) in which the writer simply identifies material as note worthy. Typical realizations include a modal verb (must, should or need to, or an adjective such as important or essential). They group items in which the writer expresses a strong conviction of what is possible, important, or necessary in category (3c). Typical realizations include adjectives such as clear, impossible or necessary (ibid.). 1.6.4 Attributions They are used to lead the reader to accept the writer's judgment as being soundly based. A distinction is made between specific attributions (4a) which have references in literature attach to them, and general attributions (4b) which have no such references. Typically, specific attribution is achieved using '' it '' followed by a past (perfect) passive form of a reporting verb, while general attribution makes reference to generally held view (Hewings and Hewings,2001: 203) 2.1 Analysis and Discussion The main purpose of this section is to gain an insight into what had previously been presented in this area and to outline the interpersonal functions of anticipatory it lexical bundles which are used as a basis in the theoretical part for this paper. Throughout this section the researcher has chosen to concentrate on lexical bundles in some of political speeches by female prominent figure in UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The term ‘political speech’ covers a large quantity of forms ranging from negotiations and formal meetings, to briefings, interviews, press conferences and speeches. Political speeches are a part of politics and are therefore historically and culturally determined. Each speech has a certain function to fulfill dependent upon the political activity at that time. Politicians constantly have to be aware that they cannot speak casually as their own person but their utterances have to be acceptable to their political party and their words must win the favor of the nation. Margaret Thatcher's political career has been one of the most remarkable of modern times. Born in October 1925 at Grantham, a small market town in eastern England, she rose to become the first (and for two decades the only) woman to lead a major Western democracy. She won three successive General Elections and served as British Prime Minister for more than eleven years (1979-90), a record unmatched in the twentieth century. Her political philosophy and economic policies emphasized deregulation, particularly of the financial sector, flexible labor markets, and the sale or closure of state-owned companies and withdrawal of subsidies to others. She is known of her hard line against trade unions and tough rhetoric in opposition to the Soviet Union earned her the nickname of the "Iron Lady". In the 1959 general election she became MP for Finchley. Edward Heath appointed Thatcher Secretary of State for Education and Science in his 1970 government. In 1975 she was elected Leader of the Conservative Party, the first woman to head a major UK political party, and in 1979 she became the UK's first female Prime Minister. Throughout her years as Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher supported the limitation of government involvement in business, a free market system, and the encouragement of entrepreneurial endeavors within the country. Many of her measures won a great deal of support among citizens, while earning Thatcher a great deal of animosity from sectors that had formally benefited from government subsidies and intervention. Her willingness to join with allies to engage in combat in the Middle East and elsewhere were often sources of controversy among many sections of British society.
The material under investigation includes different speeches delivered by Margaret Thatcher before and after her premiership. In order to explain her style, it is necessary to introduce briefly her background, policies and visions and the institutional and global context of her respective terms of office. In order to conduct the analysis, a wide array of political speeches composed by the British Prime minister Margaret Thatcher are collected. Having read through and carefully looked at the speeches collected, the paper is designed to analyze speeches in the case of Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, Leader of opposition, Member of Parliament, and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, some addressing the nation and others to the House of Commons. The researcher hoped to discover the techniques employed by Thatcher in order to persuade her own political parties, and the country as a whole. These speeches are chosen in order to show her style and her political strategies. The researcher makes it clear that this paper is not a complete comparison of how she speaks to the House of Commons and addresses the Nation, but is mainly concerned with all the lexical bundles used in all analyzed speeches. As a means of studying the anticipatory it lexical bundles of all speeches, the researcher has analyzed them broadly under the four categories of anticipatory it lexical bundles that Hewings and Hewings (2002) describe, which are outlined in the literature. The discussion of main findings can be presented below.
2.1.1. Hedges Anticipatory it lexical bundles can be used by the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher expressing different functions; one of them is that of hedges. Hedges in political discourse are very significant .They are used to encode the significant speaker's opinion. This is because hedges relate the propositional information in the text and the speaker's factual interpretation. Categorical lexical bundles are seen when a bare statement expresses hedges. This appears very frequently throughout Prime Minister’s speeches. Hedges in these political speeches are varied in their structure. In some of them, hedges express partial commitment to the truth-value of the text in the form of epistemic verbs (will, seem), and epistemic expressions involving adjectives (it is possible). The analysis of the speeches begins with a modal auxiliary combined with a lexical verb. Margaret Thatcher often uses modal verbs in passive sentences. Passive constructions have been identified as one of the prominent features of political discourse. Use the passive voice in the Prime Minister’s speeches is often intended to create an impersonal, indirect, and detached style and project her objectivity. For Thatcher, passive is more suitable than active and is considered to be requisite in her political speeches. This can be seen in the following extract:
In this context it will be obliged to look at all relevant costs. The Bill will also provide that firms which prenotify price increases after today—16th January—will not qualify for safeguards if the Price Commission decides to investigate those price increases. In 1968, Margaret Thatcher was joined the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Fuel spokesman and shortly after the 1970 general election she was promoted to Shadow transport and after that, Education. On 1968 Oct 11, Thatcher gave a speech to the Conservative Political Centre in which she tends to use the modal ''will'' to express her confident to confirm that there should be an obligation to look to all relevant costs. Thus, the use of modal verb ''will'' which convey the function of hedging in which Thatcher make use of it to rally the people into taking action. One of the means in which Thatcher can address people, is through the way in which she delivers her speech. The delivery of speech is through the use of epistemic lexical verb '' seem ''. It becomes apparent that ''seem'' occurs frequently. This particularly so in Thatcher’s speeches before her premiership as can be seen on 19 January 1976 Thatcher's speech in Kensington Town Hall in which she made a scathing attack on the Soviet Union. The Russians are bent on world dominance, and they are rapidly acquiring the means to become the most powerful imperial nation the world has seen.
It now seems that we will see further cuts.

From this extract it is possible that Thatcher uses seem to display speaker's genuine uncertainty and thus allow them to offer a very precise statement about the extent of their confidence (or lack thereof) in the truth of the propositional information they presented. ''Seem'' marks perception rather than assertion of fact and thus mark an assertion as uncertain. This verb is typically used in political discourse as a downtoner to qualify the extent to which an assertion is known.

On a few occasions, Thatcher uses the personal voice with the lexical verb ''seem''. Importantly, the personal voice presents opinions as only one person's opinions ("It seems to me that"). This is explicitly clear in her speech on 1968 to the Conservative Political Centre as in the following extract:

But it has often seemed to me that from the early 1960s the emphasis in politics shifted. At about that time ‘growth’ became the key political word. If resources grew by X per cent per annum this would provide the extra money needed for the government to make further provision.

Similarly, Thatcher uses the same lexical bundle in one of her great speeches in her premiership '' Lady's not for turning'' on October 10 1980.
Rather it seems to me that throughout my life in politics our ambitions have steadily shrunk. Our response to disappointment has not been to lengthen our stride but to shorten the distance to be covered. But with confidence in ourselves and in our future what a nation we could be! The pronoun'' me'' can also be a hedge, particularly when it occurs together with verbs like ''seem'', "because then the Thatcher can be interpreted as meaning something like 'this is only my view which depends on my political career, other people may think differently". The use of personal voice probably lessens the force of the speech for those who feel negative about it even more than impersonal hedges would. In addition, the lexical verb ''seem'' followed by a hedging adverb or adjective where the adverb (or adjective) reinforces the hedge already inherent in the lexical verb (e.g., it seems reasonable/probable).
It seems more important to have a philosophy and policy which because they are good appeal to sufficient people to secure a majority.

Another lexical bundle that can be used by Thatcher to show her tentative stance toward the following proposition is ''it is possible''. Through her first premiership, Margaret Thatcher has made a defiant speech to Conservatives at the party conference in Brighton on October 10 1980. In it she stressed her determination to stick to tough economic policies despite doubts expressed within Tory ranks. This speech is considered to be one of the most memorable speeches of the twentieth century. Her choice of the lexical bundle ‘’ it is possible’’ conjured up a powerful image of the situation in the mixture of defense to the ideals of the community as shown in the following extract:
In Europe we have shown that it is possible to combine a vigorous defense of our own interests with a deep commitment to the idea and to the ideals of the Community. 2.1.2 Attitude Markers Attitude markers express the speaker's attitude towards the actions or events described in the following proposition. There are three anticipatory it bundles that are used by Thatcher and can be put in this category: (it is important, it is difficult, and it is interesting).

The ''importance'' type is particularly common in politics, and this seems due to the high range of “metadiscursive pointers” according to Hewings and Hewings’ terminology (2002), used on purpose to guide the reader to the salient points of the discourse. Margaret Thatcher became Conservative leader in February 1975. After winning conservative leadership, she delivered a speech at Conservative Central Office to express her attitude towards this saying:

It is important to me that this prize has been won in open electoral contest with four other potential leaders. I know that they'll be disappointed, but I hope that we shall soon be back working together as colleagues for the things in which we believe.

She tends to use the personal pronoun ''me'' after the lexical bundle '' it is important to''. The main purpose of using ''that'' after the lexical bundle ''it is important to me'' seems to evaluate an event which is important for listener's understanding of the whole case. Thus, Thatcher in her speech wants to direct the audience and herself when says '' but I hope that we shall soon be back working together as colleagues for the things in which we believe '' to certain state that should be done in future. As a Prime Minister, Thatcher depends heavily on using the bundle ''it is important'' followed by either by to infinitive or that clause. In her speeches in 1979 and 1990, she tends to use ''it is important that'' to direct the listeners to the important point that is of reduction the public expenditure as a propositional of the total national income. This can be shown in the following extract:

The level of planned expenditure of the previous Government would very rapidly have led us back to where we were in 1976 when the IMF had to be called in and when even the previous Government had to impose public expenditure cuts. It is important that we reduce public expenditure as a proportion of the total national income. Our task at the moment is to constrain it.(1979 Jul 24)
If we can keep the essentials, then there is scope to reduce weapons and forces. The CFE Agreement now seems within reach. We are already looking at what should follow it, and several governments including Britain have set out the reductions in their own forces which they envisage making. It is very important that there should be effective consultation in NATO about those reductions, so that we keep what is essential for defense in all areas. (1990 Aug 30)

Similarly, in Thatcher's speeches on 1988 Sep27, the lexical bundle ''it is important'' is followed by an infinitive ''to encourage'' to indicate that Thatcher can explicitly direct the audience's attention to an important point and engage them as can be seen in the following extract:
It is therefore very important to encourage our own people to be aware of the work that is going on overseas and to come back here with their broadened outlook and new knowledge. Additionally, Thatcher uses more intensifying adverbs such as “very” to increase the force of the awareness of the work that is going on overseas as a whole.

The lexical bundle that proves interesting in this group is '' it is difficult''. This bundle is found to be the most frequent in Thatcher's speeches, but there is a considerable downward directive in the occurrence of this bundle when it is used with quite which attenuates the quality of the adjective difficult. Interestingly, this bund ''it is difficult'' can be combined with to-infinitive to describe her attitude towards the difficulty in doing an action. Thatcher employs the same technique by using intensifiers such as ''very'' to express her strong attitudes of difficulty and to conceive people of their inability to take actions or to reach a conclusion, therefore, Prime Minister inevitably indicates her attitude to what she says as can be seen in the following extracts: Now it is difficult if not impossible for people to get at the official making the decision and so paradoxically although the degree of intervention is greater, the government has become more and more remote from the people. The present result of the democratic process has therefore been an increasing authoritarianism.(October 10 1968) |
It is difficult to realize now that radio astronomy is not yet twenty-five years old. Within that short span the radio astronomers have dramatically extended man's basic knowledge of the universe and there can be little doubt that a great deal remains for them to do. Large radio facilities now exist or are being provided in many countries and we are proud to have in this country two world ranking centers of radio astronomy.( 1970 Aug 18)

It is still quite difficult to get supporters out in the Euro Election campaign, I would have thought again that it would have been easier for us as our members are actually members for constituencies, whereas in other countries of course it is just a list, and they can't have the detailed contact with the constituencies we do. (1989 Jun 14)

I think it is difficult to participate in decision-making on the directives without being a full member. They could of course feed in their views through their own negotiations so that we could take them into account. (1990 Sep30)

At the end of her years as a Prime Minister, she made a visit to Berne on 1990 Sep 10 after her visit to Switzerland in which she delivered a speech to the press expressing her attitude of being in Czechoslovakia and Hungary to discuss different matters like Foreign policy (Western Europe - non - EU), European Union (general), Foreign policy (Middle East), Economic, monetary and political union, Trade, European Union Single Market, Law and order, Foreign policy (International organizations).She used the bundle ‘’ it is interesting’’
It is interesting to come here, having been to Czechoslovakia and Hungary, interesting that all three countries, very very different in background, in history, in culture, are all interested in seeing the same kind of European Community, one that consists of the membership of sovereign nations willingly cooperating with one another but upholding their sovereignty and their own particular identity.

2.1.3 Emphatics Emphatic instances in this category are used to emphasize, intensify, or to stress the speaker's confidence and hence reassure the listener concerning the validity of the proposition asserted. Certainty markers emphasize the force or the speaker’s full commitment to the certainty of the message (clear, true, and right). Using Hewings and Hewings (2002), all of these bundles can be used to express a strong conviction of what is clear, certain, important. Using ''it is clear that'' by Thatcher, she tries to project the following propositions in the subordinate clause as an undisputed and almost certain argument. The use of this bundle, therefore, can help speakers to overtly express her position regarding the factual status of the following propositions. This can account to the listeners that she is confident enough to declare her personal judgment about the truth of a given proposition. Using this bundle expresses a strong conviction toward the proposition, authoritative, and somehow imposing language expressed. This can be seen clearly in her speech to Dublin European Council on November 1979: It is quite clear that there are a number of countries there who are prepared to help and some mentioned some figures. Now, therefore, some are prepared to help and go further, and so we can only go to a next Council standing by some of those who are trying to help us, and see if we can get a solution. Furthermore, in her speech to Rhodes European Council in the House of Commons

It is clear that the present arrangements for extradition between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland are not working well and that attention must be given to that. In the case in question, we were well aware that, all of a sudden, the Republic of Ireland had Mr. Ryan returned to it without warning. We were asking not for immediate extradition, but for a warrant for his arrest to be put into effect so that a due and proper decision could be taken on extradition in the usual way. (1988 Dec 6)

She strengthens her utterances when she comments impersonally on the validity of the proposition asserted or by ―boosting a focal element within the proposition.

This type of bundles express understanding and positive stance to the message conveyed by Thatcher. In this respect, their lexical item absolutely expresses and stresses Churchill's attitude to the proposition more than orientation to the content of the message

There is one anticipatory it bundle that can be used with almost emphatic function by Thatcher in her speech: ''it is essential that''. The use of '' it is essential that'' is almost the same as (it is clear that). Probably, the most important difference between these emphatics bundles in that while the latter mostly works to serve as an indicator of the factual and non tentative status of a given propositions, the former is usually used to invite or urge the listeners to a future action or a way of thinking as can be seen in the following:
It is essential that the bank should operate as a balancing instrument both ways-to buy gold when it is tendered, to deliver gold when it is demanded, always at a fixed, known, and previously declared price. In this way alone can we create a financial pivot on which the whole process of stabilization will revolve.

Throughout Thatcher's premiership, the number of emphatic markers identified in her speeches has pointed that she is more inclined towards using emphatic markers in her speech in comparison to these of as a Member of Parliament. Her emphasis is expressed by using the lexical bundle of ''it is true '' with the pattern form of that- clause. This holds true when she said:

Below is Thatcher’s speech to the speech to the 1978 Tory conference in preparation for Cameron's own pre-election conference address.
It is true that Conservatives are going to cut the number of new immigrants coming into this country, and cut it substantially, because racial harmony is inseparable from control of the numbers coming in. In this speech, Thatcher gave the emphatic phrase to express his conviction towards the new immigrants coming to UK. She urged the conservatives to reduce the number of immigrants to keep the racial harmony. Using such a type of lexical bundle indicated that Thatcher had in supporting and emphasizing the way that the conservatives look to this case.
I think it is true to say that the neutrality is in no way a bar because the Republic of Ireland is of course a neutral country and a full member of the Community. I gave my views on such things as the Social Charter and some of the directives that we are now going through, and my views that I hope very much that the Community would not become very strongly bureaucratic in the centre, but far from that would have the minimum rules in order to get a Single Market.(1990 Sep 20)

In 1987, months after Thatcher’s win of her third ballot of election, she delivered a Speech at Lord Mayor’s Banquet. In it she discussed the case of the financial markets saying:
As we in this country know, they enable us to withstand the storms. The first fundamental , sound money and low inflation. In the short term it was right to provide liquidity for the markets. But in the longer term you cannot buy sustained growth with higher inflation. Thatcher was committed to reducing the power of the trades unions but, unlike the Heath government, adopted a strategy of incremental change rather than a single Act. Gradually, Thatcher's reforms reduced the power and influence of the unions. The changes were chiefly focused upon preventing the recurrence of the large-scale industrial actions of the 1970s, but were also intended to ensure that the consequences for the participants would be severe if any future action was taken. The reforms were also aimed, Thatcher claimed, to democratize the unions, and return power to the members. The most significant measures were to make secondary industrial action illegal, to force union leadership to first win a ballot of the union membership before calling a strike, and to abolish the closed shop. Though Margaret Thatcher was reelected for a third term in 1987, her popularity had begun to decline by the end of her third term as a result of her views on European community and Community Charge Plan, that many people could not stomach. In a speech at Bruges on 1988 Sep 20, Thatcher outlined her opposition to proposals from European Community, forerunner of the European Union, for a federal structure and increased centralization of decision-making.
It was absolutely right to decide that agriculture's share of the budget should be cut in order to free resources for other policies, such as helping the less well-off regions and helping training for jobs. It was right too to introduce tighter budgetary discipline to enforce these decisions and to bring the Community spending under better control.

Although she had supported British membership, Thatcher believed that the role of the EC should be limited to ensuring free trade and effective competition, and feared that new EC regulations would reverse the changes she was making in the UK. She was specifically against Economic and Monetary Union, through which a single currency would replace national currencies. The speech caused an outcry from other European leaders, and exposed for the first time the deep split that was emerging over European policy inside her Conservative Party. This can be conveyed somehow by posing the lexical bundle '' it is right''. In this respect, their lexical item absolutely expresses and stresses Thatcher's attitude to the proposition more than orientation to the content of the message.

The bundle ''it is absolutely right'' could be attributed to Thatcher's incipient growing identity and confidence. The use of highly persuasive '' it is right'' implies the want to make the listeners come to a particular kind of thinking or do possible actions. It emphasizes Thatcher's strong conviction about the truth value of the proposition.

Thatcher in the following extracts used constructions often contain a hedging element, which is accomplished by using hypothetical would: '' It would be difficult '' here would conveys hypothetical and prepositional meanings. In addition, it may serve as a means of reducing the Thatcher's responsibility for the truth value and accuracy of evidence in her speech. ''Would'' may refer to future events that are contingent on a particular proposition that may be unreal or counter factual.
I am not certain whether a federal police force would be advisable. I believe that it would be very difficult to achieve because such a force would have to be answerable specifically to someone, and our present arrangement with co-operation between forces is better.(1988 Dec 6)

But you know when it comes to completing the directives for the Single Market, some of those directives have to be approved by a unanimous vote, others require only a majority vote, and so it would therefore be difficult formally to participate but only by the indirect route of letting us have their views. (1990 Sep 20)

2.2.4 Attributions Attribution is stating who said something. Attribution is essential in politics. Politicians do it so the listeners can know the prominent information and the authors in their speeches. The art of referring to the words and ideas of other writers involves many rules and requires subtle uses of vocabulary (eg, words of attribution and evaluation) and grammar (eg, verb tense - past and present and passive voice). The following section looks at issues of referencing in Thatcher's speeches that affect the ways in which her attitudes to the ideas she is speaking about become apparent to the audience. Verb tense in political speeches may exercise a greater influence on listener's interpretation of the discourse. Discourse with a high frequency of passives is typically abstract and technical in content, as well as formal in style. This can be reflected in the following extracts:

The verb of attribution "said" which functions better than most as it is both neutral, i.e. it does not carry the point of view or connotations that other verbs have. The verb ''said '' says nothing about the way the words were spoken, the circumstances of the utterance, or the attitude of the speaker. The word is a modest one, never calling attention to itself. This can be conveyed in almost of her speeches
It is usually said that NATO policy ends in North Africa at the Tropic of Cancer. But the situation in Angola brings home the fact that NATOs supply lines need to be protected much further south. (1976 Jan 19) |
It is said that we were exhausted by the war. Those who were utterly defeated can hardly have been less exhausted. Yet they have done infinitely better in peace. It is said that Britain's time is up, that we have had our finest hour and the best we can look forward to is a future fit for Mr Benn to live in. I do not accept those alibis. Of course we face great problems, problems that have fed on each other year after year, becoming harder and harder to solve. We all know them. They go to the root of the hopes and fears of ordinary people—high inflation, high unemployment, high taxation, appalling industrial relations, the lowest productivity in the Western world.(1979 Oct 12)
It is sometimes said that because of our past we, as a people, expect too much and set our sights too high. That is not the way I see it. Rather it seems to me that throughout my life in politics our ambitions have steadily shrunk. Our response to disappointment has not been to lengthen our stride but to shorten the distance to be covered. But with confidence in ourselves and in our future what a nation we could be! (1980 Oct 10)

It is apparent that Thatcher appears to generalize the prominent information which in this case was not cited. However, the majority of uses of verb ’’said’’ which express the function of attribution can be used frequently in her speeches with no reference to specific source. These extracts are also coded as author even though there was no author cited; however, it seems clear that Thatcher was referring to the ideas of others and not her own. On 1979 Jan 16, as a MP, Thatcher described the industrial situation in a period that the Labor Government faced deep difficulties. Thatcher uses the present perfect to indicate that inquiry into the specified area continues, and to present a view using a non-integral form of referencing. She makes a specific reference to ''other Tory spokesmen'' who are the responsible of the information. In this extract, the use of the verb suggest, implies that Thatcher may still not agree with the claim. This bundle usually has a more specialized function to introduce the topic, apparently to maximize the expectations required from the audience.
It has been suggested by other Tory spokesmen that industrial relations legislation which this Administration introduced has made secondary picketing more likely because of the repeal of the Conservative Administration's Industrial Relations Act 1971. It is noted that the use of passive voice appears most frequently in Thatcher’s speech as in the following:

It was stated in the White Paper that the 1979–80 cash limits would reflect the Government's policy on pay, but so far the only cash limit which has been announced has been that for the rate support grant. I should like to make clear to the local authorities that the Government will be ready to meet their share of the extra cost to the local authorities of these proposed increases to the lower paid.(1979 Jan 16)

In this extract, the fact introduced by the use of the verb state in the first proposition is that Thatcher had, in fact, made the statement; however, that does not mean that she considered the statement to be true. As with the case of use of the verb suggest, this usage of state as a part of the rhetorical strategy for critically evaluating a claim can be best seen from examining its use in a number of sentences.

Conclusion

The political communication is not just mere transfer of propositions, ideas, and referential meanings; equally important is the expression of attitudinal, evaluative, and interpersonal meanings. This paper shows that just a subset of anticipatory it bundles is also performing such a relatively wide range of interpersonal functions as hedging, making the speaker's attitude, and emphasizing the speaker's conviction or certainty about the truth of a given proposition or a state of affairs.

When the researcher tests the data from all analyzed speeches, it is concluded that Margaret Thatcher's premiership speeches constitute too much of the overall speech to contain any lexical bundles which differ significantly. Thatcher’s sentence structures involve the more frequent use of attitude markers and emphatics. The reason is that she aims at emphasizing certain facts which are important for her listeners; she tries to be confident and sound persuasive. She also stresses her own attitudes and opinions. Politicians do not want to show uncertainty, evasiveness or hesitation in front of the audience, at least not to a great extent. Additionally, boosters are used to emphasize positive information and hedges are used to attenuate negative facts, which, however, seems to be a general principle of her use.

Through the use of Thatcher's language and the way she presented herself, Thatcher was constantly constructing her own personal identity. Although many see Thatcher as a very successful orator it has been remarked that the leaders highly polished words often offend people and therefore lead to other criticism that she is almost completely insensitive to the feelings of others. She expresses her attitudes towards difficult situations in UK destiny regardless others' point of views. This leads her to her fall as a Prime Minister in 1990.

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التحليل الوظيفي للحزم المعجمية ل( ) التوقعية في الخطابات السياسية

يستقصي هذا البحث نوع خاص من مجموعة تركيبية من مجموعات الكلمة المتكررة المسماة ب ( ) التوقعية وهي حزم معجمية والتي تحدث في اغلب الأحيان في عبارات طويلة.الحزم المعجمية هي ليست تعبيرات متكاملة تركيبيا لكنها تَبْني الكُتَلَ في الحديثِ وهي مشاعة ومتكرّرة ًمما يسترعي انتياه القراء لها.
يهدف البحث إلى إظهار وإسْتِكْشاف تراكيبِ ووظائفِ الحزم المعجمية للتوقعية( )في الخطابات السياسية. يتبنى البحث تصنيفا ل( )للوظائف الشخصية " للحزم المعجمية للتوقعية( ) ".علاوة على ذلك، يَفْحصُ البحث الحالي بدقّة الوظائفَ الشخصية " للحزم المعجمية " في الخطاباتِ السياسية ِللسياسية البريطانيِة " مارجريت تاتشر". يَصِف ويُقارن البحث الأنواع التركيبية والوظيفية للحزم المعجمية التي وَجدتْ في الخطاباتِ تحت التحليلِ ُ. الإيجاد الرئيسي في هذا البحثِ يُشيرُ بأنّ هناك وظيفتان رئيسيتان مِنْ الحزمِ المعجميةِ التي تُسيطرانِ في هذا المجالِ هما إبداء الرأي والتأكيد.

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organizers Asian EFL Journal. Professional Teaching Articles. Vol. 47 October 2010
Lexical Bundles and the Construction of an Academic Voice: A Pedagogical Perspective:Winnie Pang .British Columbia Institute of Technology
The Structure of Modern English A linguistic introduction: Laurel J. Brinton

Duke University Press are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserveand extend access to American Speech.http://www.jstor.org

The speech records her refusal to perform a U-turn to liberalise the economy, as had been urged by commentators and politicians. Written by playwrightr Sir Ronald Millar, who was also Thatcher’s speechwriter, the phrase was a pun on Christopher Fry’s play The Lady’s Not For Burning. Thatcher was not aware of the pun at the time.
Margaret Thatcher is the first woman Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and was the first woman to lead a major political party in the country. Margaret Thatcher acted upon many important positions and took major responsibilities as the leader of the Conservative Party before she eventually elected to the premiership in 1979 after which she was reelected for the second and third time consecutively.
During her tenure as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher took an uncompromising stand against the trade unions, opposed the Soviet Union and established economic policies of Free Markets, entrepreneurialism and reduced State intervention in the country’s economy.
Even so, Thatcher still remains a revolutionary figure who revitalized Britain’s economy, impacted the trade unions, transformed UK into a fast growing economy and established the country as a world power.

Her party conference speech in Brighton in 1980 is a case in point.
"To those waiting with bated breath for that favourite media catchphrase, the U-turn, I have only one thing to say: 'You turn if you want to. The lady's not for turning'."
In the same speech, she predicted a brighter future under her leadership than the industrial strife which had marked the end of the previous Labour government.
Bruges speech
"We are coming slowly, painfully to an autumn of understanding," she said. "I hope it will be followed by a winter of common sense."
Five years earlier, as the newly elected leader of her party, she told delegates: "Our party is the party of equality and opportunity - as you can see."
Her speeches were marked by straight-talking: "What a prize we have to fight for: no less than the chance to banish from our land the dark divisive clouds of Marxist socialism, " she told Scottish Tories in 1983.
And in the same year she famously declared: "The National Health Service is safe in our hands."
Perhaps one of her most famous speeches was that which became known as the Bruges speech.
It was September 1988 when she set out her strident views on European integration.
'Folly'
"To try to suppress nationhood and concentrate power at the centre of e European conglomerate would be highly damaging and would jeopardise the objectives we seek to achieve.
"It would be folly to try to fit them into some of identikit European personality.
"Certainly we want to see Europe more united and with a greater sense of common purpose, but it must be in a way which preserves the different traditions, parliamentary powers, and sense of pride in one's own country." I have always said if you want a speech, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman | Margaret Thatcher |
She spoke with similar stridence in the House of Commons two years later - a speech which played a part in her downfall.
"No, no, no," she said in respect of moves towards more European integration in the aftermath of an EU summit.
She accused France and Germany of trying to create a "fortress Europe" and went on to say: "I again emphasised that we would not be prepared to have a single currency imposed upon us, nor to surrender the use of the pound sterling as our currency."
'Hostile bowling'
The speech infuriated pro-European Tories such as Geoffrey Howe, who subsequently quit the government.
A few days later she spoke of her troubles by describing the "hostile bowling of late".
That led him to make a Commons speech criticising her - and was followed by Michael Heseltine's decision to challenge her for the leadership of the Conservatives.
It was that challenge which led to her resignation.
But she continued to make speeches which had a habit of hitting the headlines.
Yet although those speeches will now become a thing of the past, she will continue, no doubt, to make her views known.
She did, after all, once tell a Townswomen's Guild meeting: "I have always said if you want a speech, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman."

In my column on the European single currency last Friday I wrote that it was a “coincidence” that Margaret Thatcher’s famous Bruges speech was made within days of Jacques Delors pivotal address to the Trade Union Congress in September. However, Jonathan Collett, former director of the Bruges Group, has written me a fascinating e-mail to correct me and say that the two events were closely connected.
Mr Collett writes:
When the government accepted the invitation to speak at the College of Europe in Bruges it had originally intended a pro European speech. However a series of integrationist speeches by Delors in the Summer of 1988 enraged the Prime Minister, including one he made on 6th July when he told the European Parliament that within ten years he expected 80 per cent of economic legislation, and perhaps social and taxation legislation, would be made by the European Community.
So Thatcher’s speech at Bruges was intended to be a direct riposte to Delors. The Foreign Office file on the preparation of the speech has now been released at the request of the Thatcher Foundation.
The papers show attempts by the Foreign Office to soften the speech which were resisted by Thatcher.
Delors got wind of what Thatcher was intending and when he spoke on 8th September to the TUC he got his rebuttal in first. According to Nigel Lawson’s memoirs, The View from Number 11, the Foreign Office had even encouraged the TUC to invite him.
The speech began the transition by which the Conservatives ceased to be “the party of Europe” in British politics, moving fitfully, by lurches, lunges and sidesteps, to a position now known as ‘Euroscepticism’. The term itself was invented in the process. Thatcher’s vision was a positive one of an enlarged post cold-war Europe but of course opposed deeper integration.

1949 Sep 9 Fr
Margaret Thatcher
Letters on Family Allowances

It is possible that some readers might have jumped to the conclusion that the splendid humanitarian woman M.P., now deceased, was a Tory. I can well remember some unkind things she said about the Tories from the Independent bench in the House. Would Miss Roberts explain why successive Tory governments, with their overwhelming majorities in a Britain much richer than it is to-day, never got past the talking stage?

The lady's not for turning
This speech was delivered to the Conservative party conference in Brighton on October 10 1980
It is sometimes said that because of our past we, as a people, expect too much and set our sights too high. That is not the way I see it. Rather it seems to me that throughout my life in politics our ambitions have steadily shrunk. Our response to disappointment has not been to lengthen our stride but to shorten the distance to be covered. But with confidence in ourselves and in our future what a nation we could be!
In Europe we have shown that it is possible to combine a vigorous defence of our own interests with a deep commitment to the idea and to the ideals of the Community.