This essay, on radical and conservative critiques of liberalism, was my Observer column this week. It was published on 2 October 2022, under the headline “From Aristotle to Meloni, the ‘common good’ has been used to divide and rule”. A prime minister elevated to her role on the basis of 81,000 votes from Conservative party members; the imposition of a regressive “mini”-budget; a policy that a majority of people oppose but the real challenge to which has come through the actions of a handful […]

Categories: Britain, Class, Politics • Tags: blue labour, brothers of italy, common good, communitarians, conservatism, david goodhart, edmund burke, far right, giorgia meloni, maurice glasman, postliberals, radical universalism, reactionary right, roger scruton, universalism