Following the radical and reformative years of labor's leadership, which forever changed the face of the British society, the Conservative party could be seen to have achieved little in comparison. However, the legacy left by Attlee's government was considered, by Churchill, to be a "crown of thorns " as, although the post war consensus eradicated political tradition, for example with the welfare state, economic growth was essential for its success. The conservative party achieved much concerning the economy. Their political dominance in 1951 stemmed from a reputation of sound financial management and, despite not making considerable political adjustments " as Labour did " Churchill's time as PM saw Britain grow into one of the greatest economic powers of the 20th century.
One view that would support the statement concerning Churchill's government would be that of the historian Bogdan who stated Attlee was 'a secular saint' in light of how much was achieved by the Labour government in a time of dire financial circumstance. Attlee's government passed legislations that were extremely popular in post-war socialist Britain, providing security with the welfare state: the national health service was an innovative policy that was quickly established as a 'national treasure' and is still in practice in the 21st century. The Conservative leadership lacked the strength to disband the post-war consensus and consequently kept much of Attlee's work, using it as a foundation for their own policies. In fact the Conservative and Labour manifesto in 1951 were extremely similar, with both promising full employment and preservation of the social services. Subsequently, it could be argued that the conservative party did not achieve a lot in the shadow of Labour's legacy, this perspective would be further supported by Peter Hennessy (a professor of contemporary Birtish History) who claimed there was "progress on a scale and duration never surpassed in the nation's history " than during Attlee's governance.
