Reform to conserve: Europe and David Cameron’s Conservatism

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article argues for the importance of considering ideology in any analysis of major political judgements. Through an exploration of British Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron’s judgement – an actor sometimes referred to as a pragmatist – the article shows that to understand why a referendum was held on Britain’s membership of the EU, we must consider Cameron’s ideology. His interpretation of conservatism showed an affinity with ‘reform to conserve’ – an idea that functions like a metaphor within British Conservative traditions for interpreting a core political concept within conservatism: that of managing what Freeden has called the ‘problem of change’. In setting out Cameron’s beliefs, and his perception of the beliefs and actions of others, the contingency of the referendum judgement is revealed – and existing explanations for the referendum decision are reframed. Narratives that approach an ‘inevitability thesis’ regarding Cameron’s decision should be resisted. Instead, we should recognize and consider the beliefs that inform such narratives and the assumptions they make. Outcomes based on ideological motivations can be unintended or even appear contradictory. For Cameron, a strategy of ‘reform to conserve’ resulted in something close to a political revolution.