As the current political impasse continues, the situation bears a resemblance to the events of 1931. As King George V once did, will the Queen advise?
On 24 August 1931, King George V called for a meeting at Buckingham Palace. There attended the Labour Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald; the Conservative leader, Stanley Baldwin; and the Liberal MP Arthur Henderson, standing in for Lloyd George who was recovering from a prostate operation. Their purpose was to discuss the economic and constitutional crisis. Their decision, strongly encouraged by the King, was to form a national government. MacDonald was promptly expelled from the Labour Party, but when he called an election in October, the National Government was returned with a record majority. It had 554 seats against a combined opposition of fewer than 100. The National Government again won an election in 1935 and, having formed a coalition with Labour for the duration of the war, lasted till 1945.
