Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?

The election of Boris Johnson with a substantial parliamentary majority in December 2019 featured the Conservative Party gaining a large number of previously safe Labour seats located in poorer, post-industrial areas (the so-called “Red Wall”). This specific electoral context, together with the stat...

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Main Authors: Kevin Hickson, Ben Williams
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Centre de Recherche et d'Etudes en Civilisation Britannique 2023-02-01
Series:Revue Française de Civilisation Britannique
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/rfcb/10621
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author Kevin Hickson
Ben Williams
author_facet Kevin Hickson
Ben Williams
author_sort Kevin Hickson
collection DOAJ
description The election of Boris Johnson with a substantial parliamentary majority in December 2019 featured the Conservative Party gaining a large number of previously safe Labour seats located in poorer, post-industrial areas (the so-called “Red Wall”). This specific electoral context, together with the stated aim of “levelling up” and the increased role for the central state necessitated by the Covid pandemic, created the opportunity for an ideological shift within the Conservative Party from Thatcherism to a revived form of One Nation Conservatism. However, the subsequent leadership contest of 2022 and Liz Truss’s disastrous attempt to revive economic liberalism has revealed the extent to which this was not achieved. The extent to which Johnson can be defined as a One Nation Conservative or be said to have left behind a One Nation legacy are evaluated in this article.
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spelling doaj-art-a54f09f367b2416fa6ef366699c829382025-08-20T02:20:07ZengCentre de Recherche et d'Etudes en Civilisation BritanniqueRevue Française de Civilisation Britannique0248-90152429-43732023-02-0128110.4000/rfcb.10621Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?Kevin HicksonBen WilliamsThe election of Boris Johnson with a substantial parliamentary majority in December 2019 featured the Conservative Party gaining a large number of previously safe Labour seats located in poorer, post-industrial areas (the so-called “Red Wall”). This specific electoral context, together with the stated aim of “levelling up” and the increased role for the central state necessitated by the Covid pandemic, created the opportunity for an ideological shift within the Conservative Party from Thatcherism to a revived form of One Nation Conservatism. However, the subsequent leadership contest of 2022 and Liz Truss’s disastrous attempt to revive economic liberalism has revealed the extent to which this was not achieved. The extent to which Johnson can be defined as a One Nation Conservative or be said to have left behind a One Nation legacy are evaluated in this article.https://journals.openedition.org/rfcb/10621Conservative PartyConservatismBoris JohnsonOne Nation
spellingShingle Kevin Hickson
Ben Williams
Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
Revue Française de Civilisation Britannique
Conservative Party
Conservatism
Boris Johnson
One Nation
title Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
title_full Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
title_fullStr Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
title_full_unstemmed Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
title_short Boris Johnson and Beyond: The Revival of One Nation Conservatism?
title_sort boris johnson and beyond the revival of one nation conservatism
topic Conservative Party
Conservatism
Boris Johnson
One Nation
url https://journals.openedition.org/rfcb/10621
work_keys_str_mv AT kevinhickson borisjohnsonandbeyondtherevivalofonenationconservatism
AT benwilliams borisjohnsonandbeyondtherevivalofonenationconservatism