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

Hickson, Kevin

doi:10.1057/bp.2009.11

Cited by 21 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…(Cameron 2010) While the intellectual roots of the turn to civil society inside the Cameronian project are diverse, the "ideal" community that emerges from governmental policy is one that is increasingly self-reliant (or resilient), "responsible" and enterprising. Again, this resonates with Conservative values of the acceptance -even defence -of inequality as an intrinsic part of social relations (Hickson 2009, Dorey 2010. From moderate Conservatives such as David Willetts and Oliver Letwin, a form of "civic conservatism" has developed over the past decade which asserts the importance of associational action (Meredith andCatney 2007, p. 367, Hickson 2009, p. 358).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Big society, little justice? Community renewable energy and the politics of localism

et al. 2013

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Big society, little justice? Community renewable energy and the politics of localism

et al. 2013

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“…Consequentially, measures such as changes to up‐rating and the benefit cap which will increase relative child poverty (Brewer et al . : 25–31; Browne : 23) can be framed as unproblematic because they purport to tackle behavioural issues: notably, the apparently longstanding challenge of ‘welfare dependency’ (Hickson ).…”

Section: Displacement Layering Drift and Conversion: Identifying Symentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond Continuity? Understanding Change in the UK Welfare State since 2010

McEnhill¹,

Taylor‐Gooby

2017

Soc Policy Adm

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One approach to identifying policy change stresses policy instruments, settings and policy paradigms, while another also considers the process and culmination of various shifts and consequent outcomes. This article illustrates the debate through an examination of how far developments in social security policy between the 1997-2010 New Labour and 2010-15 Coalition Governments in the UK constituted real policy shifts. It shows that, despite continuities in instruments and approach, there have been substantial changes in the impact of welfare state policies related to short-term benefits, employment and housing. The article identifies new policy directions leading to a different kind of welfare state, concerned less with living standards and equality and more with individual responsibility and paid work. It suggests that this has been achieved without the need for radical changes in instruments and their settings. KeywordsSocial security; Welfare policy; UK Coalition; Conservative Party; New Labour; Policy change IntroductionThe UK has been characterized as the paradigmatic majoritarian democracy, allowing the party of government to exercise considerable authority over policy directions. In theory, a new government is in a strong position to redirect policy. The tendency of UK parties to offer sharply contrasting characterizations of their policy approaches in their manifestoes, and the adversarial style of British party politics, certainly supports this impression.Few areas over the 2010-15 period have been as hotly debated as the main parties' approaches to welfare policy. There is now good quality evidence of the different effects of these approaches, and clear sets of 'new' policies can be identified from 2010, rendering this a fruitful area in which

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“…In his early days as leader he also criticised the Labour government for its failure to tackle poverty and inequality. Page (2011) suggests that Cameron sought to portray his party as modern and progressive, seeking 'to create a cohesive and tolerant society in which individuals would take greater responsibility for their own well being, philanthropy would flourish, civic society would be reinvigorated and poverty and inequality would become less well entrenched' (p. 35; see also Hickson, 2008;Garnett, 2010). Given the divisions within the Conservative Party, it is perhaps unsurprising that Beech (2015) notes that on social issues Cameron and some of his …”

Section: The Ideas That Came Under the Broad Banner Of Compassionate mentioning

confidence: 99%

Whatever happened to compassionate Conservatism under the Coalition government?

Bochel

Powell

2016

Br Polit

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Abstract:Following David Cameron's election as leader of the Conservative Party in late 2005, a series of initiatives suggested that he was seeking to reposition the Conservative Party, or perhaps to introduce some new thinking to the Party and to align it with interests and issues that it had not been linked with since at least the start of the Thatcher period. At the time, views among commentators varied about whether this was a genuine attempt to change the Conservative Party, including through a more compassionate approach to some social groups and problems, or whether it was simply designed to 'detoxify' the Party and to make it electable once more. However, many observers were unconvinced that the five years of the Coalition government saw significant evidence of the 'compassionate' ideas that Cameron and others sought to highlight prior to the 2010 general election. This article explores a number of possible reasons for the apparent disappearance of compassionate Conservatism in relation to social policies under the Coalition government. It suggests that rather than any one explanation, drawing upon a number of interpretations may provide the best understanding of the role and impact of compassionate Conservative ideas from 2010 to 2015.

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

Cited by 21 publications

References 10 publications

Big society, little justice? Community renewable energy and the politics of localism

Big society, little justice? Community renewable energy and the politics of localism

Beyond Continuity? Understanding Change in the UK Welfare State since 2010

Whatever happened to compassionate Conservatism under the Coalition government?

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