Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by liberalism. The ideology incorporates the classical liberal view of minimal

government intervention Economic interventionism, sometimes also called state interventionism, is an economic policy position favouring government intervention in the market process with the intention of correcting market failures and promoting the general welfare of ...

in the economy, according to which individuals should be free to participate in the market and generate wealth without government interference. However, liberal conservatives also hold that individuals cannot be thoroughly depended on to act responsibly in other spheres of life; therefore, they believe that a strong state is necessary to ensure law and order and that social

institution Institutions are humanly devised structures of rules and norms that shape and constrain individual behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions a ...

s are needed to nurture a sense of duty and responsibility to the nation. Liberal conservatives also support

civil liberties Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties may ...

, along with some socially conservative positions. Nevertheless, liberal conservatism differs from

social conservatism Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institutio ...

in a sense that it draws on a more liberal approach towards

social issues A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's cont ...

: for instance, matters regarding LGBT rights,

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

, equality and

the environment The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses t ...

. This is to be equated with the creation of a

cohesive Cohesion may refer to: * Cohesion (chemistry), the intermolecular attraction between like-molecules * Cohesion (computer science), a measure of how well the lines of source code within a module work together * Cohesion (geology), the part of shear ...

and

tolerant Toleration is the allowing, permitting, or acceptance of an action, idea, object, or person which one dislikes or disagrees with. Political scientist Andrew R. Murphy explains that "We can improve our understanding by defining "toleration" as a ...

society with increased levels of

individual responsibility In philosophy, moral responsibility is the status of morally deserving praise, blame, reward, or punishment for an act or omission in accordance with one's moral obligations. Deciding what (if anything) counts as "morally obligatory" is a princi ...

and less inequality. Liberal conservatism shares the classical liberal tenets of a commitment to individualism, belief in

negative freedom Negative liberty is freedom from interference by other people. Negative liberty is primarily concerned with freedom from external restraint and contrasts with positive liberty (the possession of the power and resources to fulfill one's own pote ...

, a lightly regulated free market, and a minimal

rule of law The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...

state. A number of commentators have stated that many conservative currents in the 1980s, such as Thatcherism, were rejuvenated classical liberals in all but name. However, in contrast to classical liberalism there is a stronger social agenda and support for a greater degree of state intervention especially in certain areas of social life which liberal conservatives believe should not be subject to market forces. Particularly in regards to the family, sexuality, health and education, these should either always be periodically regulated or minimally protected by the state. In Europe, liberal conservatism is the dominant form of

modern conservatism Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

and

centre-right politics Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and me ...

. Most European liberal-conservative parties adhere to the

European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...

, originally formed by Christian democrats.

Overview, definitions and usage

Both ''conservatism'' and ''liberalism'' have had different meanings over time in different centuries. The term ''liberal conservatism'' has been used in quite different ways. It usually contrasts with aristocratic conservatism, which deems the principle of equality as something discordant with human nature and emphasizes instead the idea of natural inequality. As conservatives in democratic countries have embraced typical liberal institutions such as the

private property Private property is a legal designation for the ownership of property by non-governmental legal entities. Private property is distinguishable from public property and personal property, which is owned by a state entity, and from collective or ...

, the

market economy A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand, where all suppliers and consumers ...

and constitutional representative government, the liberal element of liberal conservatism became consensual among conservatives. In some countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States, the term ''liberal conservatism'' came to be understood simply as ''conservatism'' in popular culture, prompting some conservatives who embraced more strongly

classical-liberal Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics; civil liberties under the rule of law with especial emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, econom ...

values to call themselves '' libertarians'' instead. However, there are differences between classical liberals and libertarians. In their embracement of liberal and free market principles, European liberal conservatives are clearly distinguishable from those holding

national-conservative National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity. National conservatives usually combine nationalism with conservative stances promoting traditional cultural values, ...

, fully socially conservative and/or outright populist views, let alone a right-wing populist posture. Being liberal often involves stressing free market economics and the belief in individual responsibility together with the defense of civil rights and support for a limited welfare state. Compared to other centre-right political traditions such as

Christian democracy Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...

, liberal conservatives are less socially conservative and more economically liberal, favouring low taxes and minimal state intervention in the economy. Some regional varieties and peculiarities can be observed: * In much of

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and Northwestern Europe, especially in Germanic and traditionally Protestant countries as well as the United Kingdom and Belgium, a divide persists between liberal conservatives (including Christian democrats) and liberals (including conservative liberals and social liberals). * In most

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...

, liberal conservatives, Christian democrats and liberals form distinct political families and have each their own party. The largest liberal parties are the

Nordic agrarian parties The Nordic agrarian parties, also referred to as Nordic Centre parties, Scandinavian agrarian parties or Agrarian Liberal parties are agrarian political parties that belong to a political tradition particular to the Nordic countries. Positioning th ...

, which are traditionally agrarian. * In most countries where Romance languages are spoken and where Catholicism is or has been dominant as well as in Greece and Poland, liberal conservative movements, often encompassing Christian democrats and liberals, have more recently gained traction and the terms ''conservative'' and ''liberal'' may be understood as synonymous. At the European level, Christian democrats and most liberal conservatives are affiliated to the

(EPP), while liberals (including conservative and social liberals) to the

Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

(ALDE Party). In this context, some traditionally Christian-democratic parties (such as

Christian-Democratic and Flemish Christian Democratic and Flemish (, , CD&V) is a Flemish Christian-democratic political party in Belgium. The party has historical ties to both trade unionism ( ACV) and trade associations (UNIZO) and the Farmer's League. Until 2001, the party wa ...

in Belgium, the Christian Democratic Appeal in the Netherlands, the Christian Democratic Union in Germany and the People's Party in Austria) have become almost undistinguishable from other liberal-conservative parties. On the other hand, newer liberal-conservative parties (such as New Democracy in Greece, the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

in Portugal, the People's Party in Spain,

Forza Italia Forza ItaliaThe name is not usually translated into English: ''forza'' is the second-person singular imperative of ''forzare'', in this case translating to "to compel" or "to press", and so means something like "Forward, Italy", "Come on, Ital ...

/ The People of Freedom/

in Italy, the Union for a Popular Movement/ The Republicans in France and most centre-right parties from countries once belonging to the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

and Yugoslavia) have not adopted traditional labels, but their ideologies are also a mixture of conservatism, Christian democracy and liberalism. In the modern European discourse, ''liberal conservatism'' usually encompasses centre-right political outlooks that reject at least to some extent social conservatism. This position is also associated with support for moderate forms of social safety net and environmentalism (see also

green conservatism Green conservatism is a combination of conservatism with environmentalism. Environmental concern has been voiced by both conservative politicians and philosophers throughout the history of modern conservatism, with Edmund Burke (the philosophi ...

and green liberalism). This variety of liberal conservatism has been espoused by Nordic conservatives (the Moderate Party in Sweden, the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

in Norway and the National Coalition Party in Finland) which have been fending off competition from right-wing populists to their right and do not include Christian democrats; and at times the British

. In an interview shortly after taking office as Prime Minister in 2010,

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...

introduced himself as a liberal conservative. During his first speech to a party conference in 2006, Cameron had defined this as believing in individual freedom and human rights, but being skeptical of "grand schemes to remake the world".

Liberal conservatism in the United States

In the United States, conservatives often combine the economic individualism of classical liberals with a

Burkean Edmund Burke (; 12 January NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS">New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS/nowiki>_1729_–_9_July_1797)_was_an_NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS ...

form of conservatism that emphasizes the natural inequalities between men, the irrationality of human behavior as the basis for the human drive for order and stability and the rejection of natural rights as the basis for government. From a different perspective, American conservatism (a "hybrid of conservatism and classical liberalism") has exalted three tenets of Burkean conservatism, namely the diffidence toward the power of the state, the preference of liberty over equality and for

patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...

while rejecting the three remaining tenets, namely loyalty to traditional institutions and hierarchies, scepticism regarding progress and elitism. Consequently, the term ''liberal conservatism'' is not used in the United States.

Modern American liberalism Modern liberalism in the United States, often simply referred to in the United States as liberalism, is a form of social liberalism found in American politics. It combines ideas of civil liberty and equality with support for social justice and ...

happens to be quite different from

European liberalism :''A general overview and comprehensive discussion of this topic may be found in the article Liberalism.'' In general, liberalism in Europe is a political movement that supports a broad tradition of individual liberties and constitutionally-limite ...

and occupies the centre-left of the political spectrum, in contrast to many European countries where liberalism is often more associated with the centre and centre-right while social democracy makes up a substantial part of the centre-left. The opposite is true in Latin America, where

economically liberal Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism, ...

conservatism is often labelled under the rubric of neoliberalism both in popular culture and academic discourse. American ''

libertarian conservatism Libertarian conservatism, also referred to as conservative libertarianism and conservatarianism, is a political and social philosophy that combines conservatism and libertarianism, representing the libertarian wing of conservatism and vice ver ...

'' focuses more on libertarian economic principles and conservative cultural principles, but social stances of European ''liberal conservatism'', on the other hand, are more closely related to relative progressivism than traditional conservatism. American '' neoconservatism'' is sometimes described as the same or similar to ''liberal conservatism'' in Europe. However, Peter Lawler regarded neoconservatism in the United States as ''conservative liberalism'' and distinguished it from ''liberal conservatism''. Peter Lawler,
Liberal Conservatism, Not Conservative Liberalism
', The Intercollegiate Review, Fall 2003/Spring 2004

Fiscal conservatism Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''An ...

is also an idea rooted in classical liberalism.

Classical conservatism and economic liberalism

Historically, conservatism in the 18th and 19th centuries comprised a set of principles based on concern for established tradition, respect for

authority In the fields of sociology and political science, authority is the legitimate power of a person or group over other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' is practiced in ways such a judicial branch or an executive branch of government.''The N ...

and religious values. This form of

traditionalist Traditionalism is the adherence to traditional beliefs or practices. It may also refer to: Religion * Traditional religion, a religion or belief associated with a particular ethnic group * Traditionalism (19th-century Catholicism), a 19th–cen ...

or classical conservatism is often considered to be exemplified by the writings of Joseph de Maistre in the post-

Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...

age. Contemporaneous liberalism, now recalled as classical liberalism, advocated both

political freedom Political freedom (also known as political autonomy or political agency) is a central concept in history and political thought and one of the most important features of democratic societies.Hannah Arendt, "What is Freedom?", ''Between Past and F ...

for individuals and a free market in the economic sphere. Ideas of this sort were promulgated by

John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism ...

, Montesquieu, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, Edward Gibbon, David Hume, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, who are respectively remembered as the fathers of liberalism, including economic liberalism, the separation of church and state, social liberalism and utilitarianism. Alexis de tocqueville cropped

According to scholar Andrew Vincent, the maxim of liberal conservatism is "economics is prior to politics". Others emphasize the openness of historical change and a suspicion of tyrannical majorities behind the hailing of individual liberties and traditional virtues by authors such as Edmund Burke and Alexis de Tocqueville as the basis of current liberal conservatism which can be seen both in the works of Raymond Aron and Michael Oakeshott. However, there is general agreement that the original liberal conservatives were those who combined conservative social attitudes with an economically liberal outlook, adapting a previous aristocratic understanding of natural inequalities between men to the rule of meritocracy, without directly criticizing privileges of birth as long as individual liberties were guaranteed. Over time, the majority of conservatives in the Western world came to adopt free market economic ideas as the Industrial Revolution progressed and the aristocracy lost its power, to the extent that such ideas are now generally considered as part of conservatism. Nonetheless, the term ''liberal'' is used in most countries to describe those with free-market economic views. This is the case in continental Europe, Australia and Latin America.

Liberal-conservative parties or parties with liberal-conservative factions

Current parties

* : Democratic Party of Albania * : Republican Proposal * : Liberal Party of Australia * : Austrian People's Party * : United Civic Party of Belarus * : Brazil Union * : Union of Democratic Forces (Bulgaria), Union of Democratic Forces * : Conservative Party of Canada * : National Renewal (Chile), National Renewal * : Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic), Civic Democratic Party, TOP 09 *: Croatian Democratic Union *: Venstre (Denmark), Venstre, Conservative People's Party (Denmark), Conservative People's Party *: Estonian Reform Party * : National Coalition Party, Centre Party (Finland), Centre Party * : The Republicans * : Christian Democratic Union of Germany, Free Democratic Party (Germany), Free Democratic Party * : New Democracy * : Atassut, Feeling of Community * : Independence Party (Iceland), Independence Party * : Bharatiya Janata Party * : Fine Gael * : Likud, New Hope (Israel), New Hope * :

* : New Unity, Unity * : Homeland Union * : National Action Party (Mexico), National Action Party * : Constitutional Union (Morocco), Constitutional Union * : Democratic Party (Mongolia), Democratic Party * : People's Party for Freedom and Democracy * : New Zealand National Party, National Party * :

* : Go on Country - Social Integration Party * : Partido Federal ng Pilipinas * : Agreement (political party), Agreement, Civic Platform * :

* : National Liberal Party (Romania), National Liberal Party * : Civic Platform (Russia), Civic Platform * : Serbian Progressive Party, People's Party (Serbia, 2017), People's Party * : NOVA (Slovakia), NOVA, Civic Conservative Party (Slovakia), Civic Conservative Party, Together - Civic Democracy, Alliance (Slovak political party), Alliance * : Slovenian Democratic Party * : People's Party * : Moderate Party * : The Centre (political party), The Centre * : Kuomintang * : Democrat Party (Turkey, current), Democrat Party (current) * :

* : Republican Party (United States), Republican Party * : National Party (Uruguay), National Party

Former parties

* : Democratic Social Party, Democrats (Brazil), Democrats * : Progressive Conservative Party of Canada * : Civic Democratic Alliance, Freedom Union – Democratic Union, Realists (political party), Realists *: Res Publica Party * : National Centre of Independents and Peasants, Union for the New Republic (France), Union for the New Republic, Independent Republicans, Perspectives and Realities Clubs, Union of Democrats for the Republic, Republican Party (France), Republican Party, Rally for the Republic, Union for French Democracy, Union for a Popular Movement * : Swatantra Party * : General Zionists * :

, The People of Freedom, Tyrolean Homeland Party, Italian Liberal Party * : Japan New Party * : Movement for Changes * : Conservative People's Party (Poland), Conservative People's Party, * : Romanian Democratic Convention, Democratic Convention of Romania, Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party * : G17 Plus * : Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party * : Bareunmirae Party * Democrat Party (Turkey, 1946–1961), Democrat Party (historical), Justice and Development Party (Turkey), Justice and Development Party

Liberal-conservative organisations

* : Bright Blue (organisation), Bright Blue * : Everybody's Hungary Movement

Citations

General references

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Liberal Conservatism Liberal conservatism, Conservatism Liberalism Classical liberalism Centre-right ideologies Conservatism in the United States Conservative liberalism Right-wing ideologies Political theories Social theories