Newman, J and Hayton, R orcid.org/0000-0002-9899-0035 (2022) The ontological failure of David Cameron’s ‘modernisation’ of the Conservative Party. British Politics, 17 (3). pp. 253-273. ISSN 1746-918X
Abstract
David Cameron’s leadership of the Conservatives took as its starting point the assumption that the party needed to modernise, requiring a move towards the political ‘centre ground’. This shift presented the party leadership with a series of challenges, including brand detoxification, party management, and policy renewal. Modernisation also implied ideological change, to distance the Conservatives from the legacy of Thatcherism and realign conservatism with the values of a wider section of the electorate. In this respect, Cameronite modernisation can be judged a failure. This article suggests that ontological contradictions inherent in central elements of Cameron’s conservatism, specifically the ‘Big Society’ and the ‘social justice agenda’, fatally undermined its ideological coherence. It argues that this is an important and hitherto overlooked part of the explanation for the shortcomings of Conservative Party modernisation as a political project. Although this is only one part in a wider explanation for the failure of Conservative modernisation, this case study demonstrates that ontological assumptions matter in political practice.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited part of Springer Nature 2021. This is an author produced version of an article published in British Politics. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Cameronism; Conservatism; Conservative Party; Modernisation; Ontological assumptions; Political ontology |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law (Leeds) > School of Politics & International Studies (POLIS) (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 25 Jan 2021 12:36 |
Last Modified: | 17 Nov 2022 09:32 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Palgrave Macmillan |
Identification Number: | 10.1057/s41293-021-00159-7 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:170186 |