The term ‘New Right’ was used to describe a set of political values and ideas, largely emerging in the USA in the 1970s and 1980s, which were adopted by many conservatives throughout the developed world.
What was the New Right a reaction against?
Socialist ideas gaining ground in Europe, Asia and South America
Traditional conservative values that were seen as too weak to deal with contemporary economic and social policies.
The movement can be divided into two different aspects:
neo liberalism
neo conservatism
Thatcherism argued for the importance of individual need over society
Thatcherism proposed a small state where the role of government and state intervention is reduced
Thatcherism supported self reliance
Thatcherism endorsed business deregulation and industry privatisation
Thatcherism supported reduced trade union powers
Thatcherism placed importance on national sovereignty
Thatcherism supported few taxes and making the welfare state smaller by limiting benefits
Thatcherism has a more assertive and dogmatic (uncompromising on principles) approach
By the 1970s, the effectiveness of one-nation conservatism was being undermined by large-scale industrial unrest. Tradeunions were increasingly demanding higher wages for their workers, challenging the principle that a Conservative government could successfully unite all sections of society.