Inequality has not always been seen as a priority for conservatives. This pamphlet argues that in face of new evidence about the impact of ‘everyday inequalities’ – those inequalities we see around us that are transparently unfair or undeserved – conservatives should now look again at the issue of distribution in our society.
The things that conservatives wish to achieve, from strong communities to educational opportunities, are more difficult to embed in societies which maintain enormous gulfs between the haves and the have-nots.
This pamphlet argues that there is a conservative case for a more equal society. But a national approach is too inflexible and too prescriptive to fit with a modern conservative agenda of greater autonomy for regions, communities and families. The approach set out here, one driven by localism, shows that equality can go hand in hand with independence and in localism.
With a foreword by David Willetts MP, Chair of Demos’ Progressive Conservatism Project.