The Conservative Party

So it's time to talk Tory. No, we aren't going to be bashing them all that much today, but mostly a quick lesson into the modern party and where it came from. Here we will talk about the origins, general ideals and modern actions of the Conservative  Party. 

The very basic thing you should know is that The ‘Conservative and Unionist Party’ is a political party in the United Kingdom, commonly known simply as the Tories. It is guided by principles such as the promotion of private property and enterprise, preservation of traditional cultural values and institutions of The United Kingdom, and the maintenance of a strong military. 

Tory was a political term derived from the Irish Language as an insult which later became a part of English Politics. Initially, the old ‘Tories’ were a loosely organised political faction but over time they grew into a full-fledged political party of their own. There were times when this old party was excluded from parliament. 

Even though the Conservative party along with its main opponent, the Labor Party has been dominating the political space of Great Britain since the time of World War I. This was not always the case. 

As Robert Peel's supporters began to reinterpret portions of Tory heritage under a banner of support for social reform and free trade, the term Conservative started to be used in place of Tory throughout the early 1800s. 

So you could say it was really around this time when modern Conservatism began to spread its wing and many of the social values we see today were synthesized to produce new political philosophies. Thus, this party was founded in 1834 by Rober Peel out of the old Tory Party which was initially founded in 1678.

The abolition of the "Corn Laws," which was favoured by Robert Peel and the majority of top Conservatives but despised by backbencher Conservative MPs, caused the party to split in 1846. After the repeal, the Peel administration was overthrown, and Robert Peel and his supporters later joined the Liberal Party. As a result, it took the Conservatives twenty-eight years to achieve another majority administration.

The modern Conservative and Unionist Party eventually came into being by the merger of both the old ‘Conservative Party’ and the ‘Liberal Unionist Party’ in 1912, despite the new name and philosophies the term "Tory" continues to be used to refer to a Conservative even in modern times. 

What does Conservative Party stand for?

The conservative party is basically a union of various ideological groups where most of them strive to achieve social harmony and economic interventionism. In recent times we have seen vast changes in the party on topics such as LGBT rights and the way in which they target voters. 

Now, I live in what is called a Labour stronghold, an old mining town in the north of England, and even here we have seen the number of people voting tory increase over the years. They would like us to think the days of the Tories being the party of the wealthy and middle class are over. But as someone who lives in a very working-class location, surrounded by many social housing tenants and low-paid workers, I do question if much has changed. 

The current domination of the conservatives started back in 2006, when the former Prime Minister, David Cameron came forward with a list of the aims and objectives of the Conservative Party. However, the main aim lies in the improvement of the quality of life for people of all social groups and classes. He aimed to provide a strong society and a sustainable environment to secure the foundations and protect the future. The Tories are a unionist party, meaning that they believe the UK is stronger as a union than they are as separate nations. 

So it may be a surprise for you to hear that it was under David Cameron that the first Scottish independence referendum was called. He believed that for the nation to move forward as one unit they needed to put the independence movement to bed once and for all. In September 2014 the vote went ahead, we say an unusual union of campaigning, where the Conservatives, Labour, and Liberal Democrats all agreed on the policy. And that policy was unionism.

It was a success for the major players in the end and the independence vote failed, it failed on a promise of strong ties with Europe. Also, better trading negotiating power through not only the UK but also through the trading block that is The European Union. This point is key as we go forward. It is noted that Scotland generally spends more than it takes in taxes, the amount of money it has is allocated through the Barnett Formula, as are all devolved governments, and is well known to be higher than they would have taken in taxes. 

Although there was growing pressure for an EU referendum for some time, it wasn’t exactly what the majority wanted. There was a minority in not only the general public but also in the Conservative party. Despite this, very vocal minority David Cameron decided to campaign for the “remain” vote. In many ways this seemed like the best side, public polling showed higher support for this side and historically the UK public would vote alongside the status quo. 

This would be the downfall for Cameron in the end, because after it was all said and done, with ferocious campaigning on both sides. It was not the result he and many major players in politics wanted. 

I truly believe that David Cameron thought he had an easy win on his hands, and with the win of yet another referendum would entrench his position to remain in power. It seems there's a common theme with Conservatives, once they get a taste of power, they can’t help but try their best to keep hold of it. 

In general British Conservatives have certain beliefs and policies which keep them going as one unit. This is not really any different to most other political parties. Despite the fact that they have tried to reposition themselves as a party not only for the middle class and up but also the working man. It really doesn’t seem to have gone that way, under Boris Johnson and to a lesser effect Theresa May, it could be said that moves were made to this effect. Changes to tax rules such as increasing the tax-free “personal Allowance” multiple times, and reducing or freezing levies on alcohol, fuel, and hot food, which are all seen as benefitting the working class more than their typical voter base. 

All of this has been thrown away with the most recent choices made by the current prime minister Liz Truss. We have a post on that from a few weeks ago if you fancy it, here's the link. But in general, we have seen a cut in taxes for the highest earners, investors and businesses, a reduction of duties owed when buying homes and the scrapping of limits on bankers' bonuses. Overall the mini-budget has once again gone proven that the conservatives are a party for the wealthy and higher echelons of British society. 

They claim to strive to implement ideals that everyone in society should be uplifted and inspired by the tax system, education and free markets should bring in multiple opportunities for society as a whole and that Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales must remain as a part of the United Kingdom.  Some of its other guiding principles include the maintenance of strong military and foreign policy, promotion of private property and enterprise, and conservation of traditional cultural values, institutions, and the monarchy.

Although it is the middle class and landowners that make up a large portion of its membership, the working class makes up roughly one-third of its electoral base at times. In all honesty, I don’t think it is likely that they can confidently rely on working class voters in the next election. Unless, either their policies change dramatically in the coming months and years, or, the country somehow benefits from the madness that is Liz Truss’ and Kwasi kwartengs’ most recent direction for the country's economies. 

And there we have it folks, The Conservative Party in a nutshell. 

Spec.