Events from the year 1992 in the United Kingdom. This year was the Ruby Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
This year is notable for a fourth-term general election victory for the Conservative Party; "Black Wednesday" (16 September), the suspension of the UK's membership of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism; and an annus horribilis for the Royal Family.
Incumbents
Monarch – Elizabeth II
Prime Minister – John Major (Conservative) Parliament 50th (until 16 March) 51st (starting 27 April)
Events
January
January – Statistics show that economic growth returned during the final quarter of 1991 after five successive quarters of contraction. 9 January Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown proposes a £3billion package which would create 400,000 jobs in 12 months. Alison Halford, the UK's most senior policewoman, is suspended from duty for a second time following a police authority meeting. 10 January – The first full week of 1992 sees some 4,000 jobs lost across the UK, as the nation's recession continues. Almost 20% of those job cuts have been by GEC, the UK's leading telecommunications manufacturer, where 750 redundancies are announced today. 14 January – The Bank of Credit and Commerce International goes into liquidation. 17 January Eight people are killed in the Teebane bombing. The first MORI poll of 1992 shows the Conservatives three points ahead of Labour on 42%, while the Liberal Democrats have their best showing yet with 16% of the vote. 29 January – The Department of Health reveals that AIDS cases among heterosexuals increased by 50% between 1990 and 1991. 30 January – John Major agrees a weapons control deal with new Russian premier Boris Yeltsin at 10 Downing Street.
February
2 February – Neil Kinnock, Labour leader, denies reports that he had a "Kremlin connection" during the 1980s. 6 February – The Queen commemorates her Ruby Jubilee, the first British monarch to do so since her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria in 1877. 7 February – Signing of the Maastricht Treaty. 8–23 February – Great Britain and Northern Ireland compete at the Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, but do not win any medals. 9 February – Prime Minister John Major speaks of his hopes that the recession will soon be over as the economy is now showing signs of recovery. 15 February – Neil Kinnock, Labour Party leader, speaks of his belief that the Conservative government's failure to halt the current recession will win his party the forthcoming general election. 18 February – David Stevens, head of community relations, blames the recession for the recent rise in crime across the UK – most of all in deprived areas. 20 February – Hopes of an end to the recession are dashed by government figures which reveal that GDP fell by 0.3% in the final quarter of 1991. 23 February – The London Business School predicts an economic growth rate of 1.2% for this year, sparking hopes that the recession is nearing its end.