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Conservatism and the poor: Conservative party attitudes to poverty and inequality since the 1970s

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Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine Conservative Party attitudes to inequality and poverty since the 1970s. Several arguments are made. The first is that all sections of the Conservative Party have sought to justify inequality and to reject social democratic arguments for greater equality. However, there was considerable debate in the 1970s and 1980s over the issue of poverty between One Nation and New Right Conservatives. Furthermore, this debate sheds much light on the nature of contemporary Conservatism under David Cameron. It is argued that there has been a return to some of the key themes of the One Nation approach under Cameron, albeit one that is moderated by continuing elements of Thatcherism.

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Acknowledgements

I am grateful to the two editors and two anonymous referees for their thoughtful comments on an earlier draft of this article and to those who responded to my paper on related issues at the annual conference of the American Political Science Association, Boston, 2008.

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  1. School of Politics and Communication Studies, Roxby Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZT, UK

    Kevin Hickson

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Hickson, K. Conservatism and the poor: Conservative party attitudes to poverty and inequality since the 1970s. Br Polit 4, 341–362 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1057/bp.2009.11

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