People's Republic of South Yorkshire

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The People's Republic of South Yorkshire or The Socialist Republic of South Yorkshire, is a satirical reference to Sheffield. It refers to the left-wing Labour administration of Sheffield City Council during the 1980s, under the leadership of David Blunkett.

The expression is said to have been coined by Irvine Patnick, a Conservative MP who represented Sheffield Hallam, an unusually wealthy area of South Yorkshire [1]. However it was sometimes used by supporters of the council's left-wing policies.

Examples of policies introduced by the council during this period are:

• Sheffield council twinning itself with Donetsk, Ukraine, which was then in the Soviet Union.
• The introduction of Peace Studies into schools.
• Sheffield declaring itself a nuclear-free zone.
• Cheap public transport.
• Flying the red flag on Sheffield Town Hall on May Day [2]

The policies of the council contrasted sharply with the national government of the day, that of Margaret Thatcher.

The Miner's Strike also took place during this period.