Boris Johnson and the Future of British Conservatism
| Date | 01 September 2019 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2041905819871835 |
| Author | Andrew S. Crines |
| Published date | 01 September 2019 |
4 POLITICAL INSIGHT • SEPTEMBER 2019
Who is Boris Johnson? This is
a question commentators
and political analysts
frequently asked
themselves over the course of the 2019
Conservative Party leadership election. There
is Boris the London Mayor (joker); Boris the
MP (worker); Boris the Foreign Secretary
(shirker); and now Boris the Prime Minister.
During the campaign another question
was often asked: can Boris be beaten? And
if so, by whom? As the results indicated
throughout the campaign, none of the
other Tory candidates were able to defeat
him. Ultimately, Johnson overwhelmingly
triumphed against his closest leadership
contender, Jeremy Hunt, securing 92, 153
(66.4%) of the membership ballot and a clear
majority in the nal vote of Conservative MPs.
Johnson’s support from the Conservative
Party is clear. But what does this mean for the
future of conservatism in British politics?
As one of our richest and oldest political
and intellectual traditions, conservatism has
been renewed and reshaped many times
since the liberal democratic system emerged.
Boris Johnson and
the Future of British
Conservatism
As Boris Johnson enters office, Andrew S. Crines asks what kind
of Tory the new Prime Minister is and whether he can renew
British conservatism.
Norton and Aughey describe conservatism
as ‘a habit of mind which naturally disposes
members of the party to perceive what
is necessary in changing circumstances’.
Traditional conservatism, One Nation
conservatism, and liberal conservatism are
but three such traditions which have played a
signicant role in the government of the UK.
For Gamble, liberal conservatism is driven by
free ‘market liberalism as a dominant public
philosophy’. During the recent Conservative
Party leadership election, candidates were
aorded opportunities to articulate their
own understanding of conservatism in the
context of contemporary political debates,
particularly surrounding Brexit, the economy,
the future of social policy, and the future
of the UK’s global role. It is interesting to
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Political Insight SEPT2019.indd 4 01/08/2019 14:10
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