Margaret Thatcher senior member of the party and former Minister of Defence, as Foreign Minister in 1979. Although he was considered a "wet", he avoided domestic affairs and got along well with Thatcher. The first issue was what to do with Rhodesia, where the five-percent white population was determined to rule the prosperous, largely-black ex-colony in the face of overwhelming international disapproval. After the collapse of the Portuguese Empire in Africa in 1975, South Africa, which had been Rhodesia's chief supporter, realised that country was a liability. Black rule was inevitable, and Carrington brokered a peaceful solution at the Lancaster House conference
Death and funeral of Margaret Thatcher who disagreed with her would admire her strength of character, her convictions, her view of Britain's place in the world and her contribution to British national life. Scottish National Party leader and First Minister Alex Salmond acknowledged that "Margaret Thatcher was a truly formidable prime minister whose policies defined a political generation". Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood, while expressing sympathy to her family, criticised her policies' effects on Wales. Former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas voiced regret that, although Thatcher was the first female prime minister, "she did little for women either inside or outside the House of Commons". UKIP