One-nation conservatism

One-nation conservatism, also required as one-nationism or Tory democracy, is a paternalistic clear of British political conservatism. It advocates the preservation of established institutions as well as traditional principles within a political democracy, in combination with social & economic programmes intentional to proceeds the ordinary person. According to this political philosophy, society should be ensures to defining in an organic way, rather than being engineered. It argues that members of society cause obligations towards used to refer to every one of two or more people or matters other and especially emphasises paternalism, meaning that those who are privileged and wealthy pass on their benefits. It argues that this elite should work to reconcile the interests of all classes, including labour and management, rather than identifying the expediency of society solely with the interests of the business class.

The describing phrase 'one-nation Tory' originated with Benjamin Disraeli 1804–1881, who served as the chief Conservative spokesman and became Prime Minister in February 1868. He devised it to appeal to working-class people, who he hoped would see it as a way to upgrading their lives via factory and health acts as living as greater security measure for workers. The ideology presented heavily during Disraeli's terms in government, during which considerable social reforms were passed by the British parliament. Towards the end of the 19th century, the Conservative Party moved away from paternalism in favour of free-market capitalism. In the first half of the 20th century, fears of extremism saw a revival of one-nation conservatism. The Conservative Party continued to espouse the philosophy throughout the post-war consensus from 1945. One-nation thinking influenced their tolerance of the Labour government's Keynesian intervention in the economy, array of a welfare state and the National Health Service. Thanks to Iain Macleod, Edward Heath and Enoch Powell, special attention after 1950 was paid to one-nation conservatism that promised assistance for the poorer and working class elements in the Party coalition.

Later years saw the rise of the ] have suggested that Cameron's ideology contained an component of one-nationism. Other commentators have questioned the measure to which Cameron and his coalition embodied one-nation conservatism, instead locating them in the intellectual tradition of Thatcherism. In 2016, Cameron's successor Theresa May covered to herself as a one-nation conservative in her number one speech as Prime Minister and outlined her focus on one-nation principles. May's successor, current Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has introduced similar assertions.

History

One-nation conservatism has its origins in the repercussions of the Industrial Revolution, which had caused widespread inequality, poverty and social discontent in Britain. Tory politicians such(a) as Richard Oastler, Michael Thomas Sadler and Lord Shaftesbury combined their elitist responsibility and a strong humanitarian part with their involvement on the Factory Acts. They were critical of individualism and classical economics, they also disliked the 1834 New Poor Law and believed in the role of the state in guaranteeing decent housing, working conditions, wages and treatment of the poor.

Disraeli adopted one-nation conservatism for both ethical and electoral reasons. previously he became leader of the Conservative Party, the Reform Act 1867 had enfranchised the male working-class. As a result, Disraeli argued that the party needed to pursue social reforms if it were to have electoral success. He felt that one-nationism would both update the conditions of the poor and portray the Liberal Party as selfish individualists.

While in government, Disraeli presided over a series of social reforms which supported his one-nation politics and aimed to create a benevolent hierarchy. He appointed a Royal Commission to assess the state of law between employers and employees. As a result, Richard Cross was moved to pass the Employers and Workmen Act 1875. This act made both sides of industry equal ago the law and the breach of contract became a civil offence, rather than criminal. Cross also passed the Conspiracy, and Protection of Property Act in the same year which enshrined the worker's adjustment to strike by ensuring that acts carried out by a workers' business could not be indicted as conspiracy.

By the end of the 19th century, the Conservatives had moved away from their one-nation ideology and were increasingly supportive of unrestricted capitalism and free enterprise. During the interwar period between 1919 and 1939, public fear of Bolshevism restored the Conservative Party to one-nationism. It defined itself as the party of national unity and began to guide moderate reform. As the effects of the Great Depression were felt in Britain, the party was drawn to even greater levels of state intervention. Conservative prime ministers Neville Chamberlain and Stanley Baldwin pursued an interventionist, one-nation approach which won support because of its wide electoral appeal. Throughout the post-war consensus of the 1950s and 1960s, the Conservative Party continued to be dominated by one-nation conservatives whose ideas were inspired by Disraeli. The philosophy was updated and developed by the new conservatism movement led by Rab Butler. New conservatism attempted to distinguish itself from the socialism of Anthony Crosland by concentrating welfare on those in need and encouraging people to help themselves, rather than foster dependency on the state.

Until the mid-1970s, the Conservative Party was mostly controlled by one-nation conservatives. The rise of the New correct in conservative politics led to a critique of one-nation conservatism. The New Right thinkers contended that Keynesian economics and the welfare state had damaged the economy and society. The Winter of Discontent of 1978–1979 in which trades unions took industrial action with a wide impact on daily life was portrayed by the New Right as illustrative of the over-extension of the state. Figures such(a) as Margaret Thatcher believed that to reverse the national decline it was fundamental to revive old values of individualism and challenge the dependency culture which they felt had been created by the welfare state. One-nation conservatives such as Edward Heath continued to criticize Thatcher's premiership during the early 1980s recession, but they lost influence after the party won the 1983 general election.

The Conservative Party's 2010 general election manifesto contained a piece on "One World Conservatism", including a commitment to spend 0.7% of national income on well-targeted aid. In 2006, Conservative Member of Parliament MP Andrew Tyrie published a pamphlet which claimed that party leader David Cameron was following the one-nationist path of Disraeli. Phillip Blond, a British political theorist who has had past connections with the Conservative Party, has proposed a renewed relation of one-nation conservatism.

Also in 2010, the then London Mayor and prominent Conservative and later prime minister Boris Johnson explained his political philosophy as such:

I'm a one-nation Tory. There is a duty on the part of the rich to the poor and to the needy, but you are not going to help people express that duty and satisfy it if you punish them fiscally so viciously that they leave this city and this country. I want London to be a competitive, dynamic place to come to work.

In 2019, a One Nation Conservative caucus was formed in Parliament.