Ideological Development of the Conservative Party Coursework

Ideological Development of the Conservative Party - Coursework Example It is through these policies that the party has managed to achieve many of it successes. However, the policies are amended on several occasions. These have come because of defeats and successes in the political journey. With each new leadership of the party, new ideologies, strategies and policies arise. The modern conservative party under the leadership of David Cameron describes what the party has become in recent times. Before 1975, the conservative party held on to traditional pragmatism and strongly believed in the one state conservatism. Conservatism originated from Edmund Burke. He expressed his beliefs and ideas, which were philosophical but applied them politically. He formed the new principle of conservatism based on his understanding of nature, and definition of society. According to him, civil institutions had a religious origin. He believed societal progress was purely divine and that the state was an institution meant to help man govern himself better. Therefore, indivi duals holding public office had the obligation to govern from a divine origin. He urged them to hold office with honesty. The one state conservatism had two aspects: social and political. The social aspect of the one state conservatism sought to ensure that there existed an inclusion system. Inclusion involved ensuring that economically and socially, all had access to advances. The party sought to end the alienation suffered by some groups in society. The alienations affected the groups that immediate actions had to be taken. Politically, the one state conservatism sought to introduce a coalition in terms of support. The one state conservatism believed in the existence of a state and elaborated the responsibilities of the state. This conservatism concentrated on social aspects of the people. In 1975, Margaret Thatcher became the party leader and sought to redefine the ideologies established by her predecessors. In efforts to redefine her ideologies, Thatcher started by first establi shing a new definition for conservatism. According to her, conservatism was supposed to start from an individualistic point of view. She narrowed down society to individuals who had their unique needs. It was logical then to address the individual needs of each person before going to families and later to the community. Being an enthusiastic woman, she challenged the traditional pragmatism that change needed to be m taken slowly. In her idealism, change could be as well as be radical. Due to her enthusiasm for change, the ideologies of her time received the name ‘thatcherian agenda’. She did not support the gradual approach to change. She had the determination to put her ideologies into practice. During her period, Thatcher believed in practical politics. Her agenda was touched on classical liberalism, neo-liberalism, and free market (Ingle, 2008:34). Just like any other leader, Hatcher faced criticism on her agenda because some analysts thought that her ideas countered each other at some point. In fact, some people seem fully opposed to her ideas. However, her long reign gave her enough time to establish some of her ideologies and thus she gained popularity. Due to her liberal ideas, she was a vessel for the establishment of free markets. Further, she advocated for privatization of industries. Throughout her period, she achieved much. Her greatest achievement was the reduction of strikes by enforcing strong policies on unions.