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Are there really meaningful differences between Liberalism and Conservatism in practice
in advanced liberal democracies?
University of Prince Edward Island
POLS 101
Hoang V Le
0351329
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The feud between Liberalism and Conservatism is a feud that’s been going for centuries.
Since the French Revolution all the way up to the present day, when you ask someone the
question of are you a liberal left wing or are you a conservative right wing, the extremist will tell
you who they are, but for everyday people, the line between the two is blurrier than ever. History
does not give an exact clear definition either. In fact, whether or not it’s different from each other
depends on what year it is, which country it is and who is advocating for it. For example,
Conservatism today is no longer advocating for monarchy and state authority as much as it did in
the 1800s (Dagger et al., 2023), and modern Liberalism is equally different from its ancestors. So
to explore whether or not there’s truly a difference between Conservatism and classical
Liberalism, we’ll start by defining the two ideologies. Then we’ll look at how it is in practice
across major social issues for Canada as well as the United States of America because with each
political culture and electoral system, it will define how each ideology is being practiced. Then
from there I will compare the differences, and the similarities between the parties, and how
eventually both ideologies in practice with a political party will eventually meet in the middle
where there are little to no major differences due to the first past the post system, and why the
two ideologies cannot sustain without each other.
The idea of Conservatism it’s best defined as change only when necessary, don’t change
what’s working. As Michael Oackscot says in his piece “On Being A Conservative”:To prefer the
tried to the untried(1956). It favors the true and tested institution, traditions and practices that
have evolved gradually that serve everyone, and not constantly implementing new, abstract and
novel ideas (Dagger et al., 2023). We can see this ideology can be dated back to the 1800s with
Edmund Burke who is widely regarded as the first overtly conservative political theorist, despite
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the fact that conservatives occasionally identify with ancient philosophers like Aristotle and
Cicero as their ancestors (Dagger et al., 2023). Burke foresaw in his Reflections on the
Revolution in France that the French Revolution would lead to terror and dictatorship in 1790.
He accused the revolutionaries of dismantling tried-and-true institutions out of a rationalist
disdain for the past, with no guarantee that anything better could take their place (Dagger et al.,
2023). Respecting our traditions still remains as one of the main principles of the conservatives
party of Canada today as written in their governing documents (Conservative.ca, 2023).
Modern day Conservative Party in Canada also supports the idea of a free-market
economy and limited government intervention to support individual freedom and liberty,
believing that the government should only work to protect the citizen’s safety and nothing else.
This is actually similar to classical Liberalism philosophy of the limited government role and
creating a capitalist market (Garner et al., 2017).
Famous advocates for conservatives that are relevant today are Pierre Polieve who became
Leader of His Majesty’s Official Opposition in September 2022, Canada’s Conservative party
and running to be prime minister of canada. He supports the idea of the state as a servant, as
stated in his about us section on Conservative.ca (Conservative.ca, 2023):
“He believes in a country where the state is servant, not master. Where a smaller
government makes room for bigger citizens. Where people have the freedom to build a business
without red tape and heavy tax.”
Another notable figure is Donald Trump, Ex-United States’s President. He was also a big
advocate of the free market and lower taxes (Contributors, 2023)
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Shifting gears to Liberalism, the idea that founded the basis of a democracy. Liberalism ideology
is to maximize individual freedom to live and prosper. They support a free market economy, and
limiting the role of the government to external and internal security– rewarding those who work
the hardest (Garner et al., 2017). Liberalism as an ideology started becoming more popular as a
political ideology in the early 16th century (with some claiming to have its history all the way
back to the middle ages (Britannica, 1998), made formal by The English philosophers Thomas
Hobbes and John Locke. In Leviathan (Hobbes, 2004), Hobbes contended that the consent of the
governed—who, in a fictitious social contract, promised to obey the sovereign in all affairs in
return for a guarantee of peace and security—was eventually sufficient to justify the sovereign's
entire power. Locke likewise subscribed to the social contract idea of government, but he insisted
that it was unreasonable for the contract's participants to submit to an all-powerful king. He
contended that the idea and rationale of political authority—that is, the need to safeguard people
and property—are incompatible with absolute rule .He contended that absolute control runs
counter to the purpose and rationale of political authority, which is to safeguard people's rights to
their own person and property as well as their inherent freedoms of speech, worship, and
thought. Notably, Locke believed that when the sovereign fails to carry out these duties,
revolution is acceptable (Britannica, 1998). This is one of the main reasoning for many Great
revolutions that created many advanced democracies today like the American Revolution, The
French Revolution and The English Civil wars and more (Britannica, 1998).
With modern Liberalism however, the chief task of the state is to remove obstacles that
prevent individuals from living freely or from fully realizing their potential. This came to be due
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to the free market economy concentrating the majority of wealth into the few top producers,
industrialists and financiers, while the majority of people live in poverty conditions (Garner et
al., 2017). This school of thought is also concerned of those who controlled the means of
production had amassed significant financial power, which they utilized to sway public opinion,
exert control over the government, suppress opposition, restrict competition, and thwart real
social change.
So Modern Liberals call for more state intervention in a market - creating a mixed market
economy so that everyone can have equality of opportunity. Social programs like free healthcare,
public education regulating worker’s condition are all a part of the modern liberal program
(Garner et al., 2017). Promoting equality of opportunity is also one of the main constitution of
The Liberal Party of Canada (2016).
Some notable Liberals figures are Justine Trudeau, advocating for social welfare
programs like Canada Child Benefit, climate policies and tax cut for the the middle class while
raising taxes for the wealthiest of canada (Meet Justin Trudeau | Liberal Party of Canada, n.d.).
Now in advanced liberal democracies, both Conservatism and Liberalism can be wildly different
from country to country. For the purpose of this paper we will look at Conservatives and Liberals
in a Polarized political environment like The United States of America, then compare that to
Canada during the 2021 election, where the line’s much more blurry in practice.
First, The United States–when it comes to social problems, conservatives are against stem cell
research on embryos, abortion, and gay marriage. On the other side, Liberals lean more left and
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are generally in favor of women's right to choose whether to have an abortion and the right of
gay people to get married, as established by the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v Wade
decision(Wikipedia Contributors, 2023).
Talking about the economy, political Liberals hold that unless the government is ready and able
to restrain them, self-interested groups will continue to act in manners detrimental to society.
They contend that the need for regulation arises when people, businesses, and sectors of the
economy show a readiness to seek profit at an unacceptable price to society as a whole and once
they become too big to be restrained by current social structures. Liberals support comprehensive
regulations to prevent hazardous jobs, dangerous consumer goods, and pollution of the
environment(Conservative Vs Liberal, 2023). They are nevertheless worried about the historical
injustices, especially the persecution of political minorities, and corruption that have occurred
when state and municipal government monitoring has been lacking. They believe that fostering a
society that is broadly permissive and tolerant advances the interests of the general population
(Conservative Vs Liberal, 2023).
Political conservatives on the other hand argue that economic regulation stifles potentially
game-changing inventions, unduly usurps political freedoms, and almost always results in further
regulatory interventions(Conservative Vs Liberal, 2023). They also support the government's
withdrawal from non-commercial spheres of society, urging the private sector to take over these
responsibilities. Conservatives favor giving the states more authority and think locally specific
solutions are more suited to the needs of the area. They encourage personal accountability and
think that independent citizens make up a robust society. Conservatives support law and order as
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a means of safeguarding private property because they see stability as important (Conservatism
in the United States, 2023).
In terms of healthcare, Liberals favor government action to break the connection between a
person's personal health and their financial situation. They also think that everyone should have
universal access to health care. Political conservatives embrace deregulating trade, a smaller role
for the state in all spheres of society, and the privatization of every industry, including health
care. They contend that the government ought to have no say whatsoever in what people choose
to invest for their own healthcare (Britannica, 1998).
As one can see in America, it’s quite evident how different the two parties are on their stance
towards major issues. This is partly due to the fact that the United State is an individualist
society, where there’s less expectation on the government to fend for the citizens.
Let’s take a look at Canada, a more collectivist society on similar issues. The following points
are taken from a comparison chart organized by CBC News (CBC News, n.d.). During the
COVID recovery phase, the Liberal government allocated significant funds for pandemic aid
through relief benefits and wage subsidies. They plan to extend emergency measures like wage
subsidies and hiring programs while providing temporary support to the
struggling tourism industry. Additionally, they agreed on a substantial loan package with Air
Canada.
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In contrast, the Conservative approach involves winding down emergency spending responsibly
and introducing a "Canada jobs surge plan" to aid severely affected sectors. They propose
subsidizing up to 50% of new hires' salaries after the wage subsidy ends, offering loans of up to
$200,000 for specific sectors, with a portion being forgivable. Conservatives also aim to support
the airline industry's reconstruction efforts.
On the topic of climate change, The Liberals aim to cut Canada's greenhouse gasses by
40-45% below 2005 levels by 2030 through a national carbon price, set targets for net-zero
emissions by 2050, and plan to regulate oil and gas while banning single-use plastics by 2030.
Contrarily, the Conservatives oppose net-zero legislation, aiming for a 30% reduction by 2030.
They'd replace carbon pricing, divert funds to personal green savings, maintain industrial pricing,
invest in carbon capture, and tax imports from countries with weaker climate rules.
For healthcare, The Liberals declined the provinces' request for a $28 billion annual
increase in federal health-care spending. Instead, they offered $10 billion for the 2021-22 budget,
allocating $6 billion to reduce treatment waitlists, $3.2 billion to hire 7,500 medical
professionals, and the remainder for virtual care enhancements and rural health care.
Additionally, they committed $4.5 billion over five years to support mental health services and
initiate a universal pharmacare program.
In contrast, The Conservatives aim to negotiate a new health-care agreement with premiers
within their first 100 days in power. They propose elevating the annual growth rate of the Canada
Health Transfer to six percent, promising an extra $60 billion for health care over a decade,
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focusing on mental health services. They also pledge $325 million for drug treatment beds and
recovery centers but do not address pharmacare in their platform.
In terms of racism and equality, The Liberal government initiated a $291.3 million loan
fund for Black entrepreneurs and allocated $200 million for a Black-led endowment fund in their
budget. They promised $100 million for Black-led nonprofits and $172 million for better
race-based data. They plan a national anti-hate plan by 2022 and a strategy to combat anti-Black
racism in the justice system.
Conversely, the Conservative platform lacks explicit measures on racial inequality or racism.
They vow to take inequality seriously, appoint specific ambassadors, and double funding to
counter hate crimes.
Looking at the two parties in Canada however practicing Liberalism and Conservatism
after reviewing the CBC comparison, it’s quite hard to tell the clear line of difference on where
they stand on major social issues. Again this is partly due to Canada being a collectivist society
and the people expect more government involvement in the citizen’s prosperity, but also due to a
first past the post voting system (Garner et al., 2017). This system influences parties to shift their
ideas and governing plans to capture swing voters, who usually have mixed ideologies.
With that being said, after everything is laid out, one can see that really the main
difference between the Conservatives and the Liberals is the role of the government on each
issue. Conservatives prefer a more limited role and promote individuals’ responsibility in
prospering for their own life and their families. We can see that in healthcare, social issues like
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racial equality and the economy. Conservatives put more responsibility on the people and the
citizens to work hard for their own life and family’s prosperity. Modern Liberals on the other
hand exercise heavier government intervention to create equality of opportunity for everyone,
mainly so the poor and powerless can thrive through social programs and reforms. We can see
this with plans for universal healthcare and financial aid during pandemics.
Now at the beginning I mentioned the first party to pass the post system and how it’s making
parties and ideologies increasingly similar so they can have more support from the people who
are not on either extreme. So in reality, while there are differences now in stances on social
issues and ideology now, it will continually evolve into each other.We can already see how
similar the two parties are on many social issues particularly in Canada.
An interesting article by James Ceaser (2014) argues that the two ideologies cannot exist without
each other. They sustain and innovate with each other. For example, Liberals are idealist,
progressive and innovators. They always think of new changes and new policies they think
would benefit the society as a whole. But many times they don’t address the cost of that change
for the majority - and only count the minority who are the most active politically(Ceaser,
2014).Whereas conservatives are more averse to change and prefer the true and tested are often
the ones who ground the Liberals and keep them in check – and roll out the tools to execute on
the ideas. In this sense both are participating in the conversation of how will we live together
equally - one side creates the idea and one side implements it and make it better. You can see that
many modern conservatives ideas like free market economy, individual freedom–while still
helping those who needs help are originally inspired by Classical Liberalism.
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If you look at the government essentially like a startup or a business, you can see this in action.
Often the innovators and founders are the Liberals–they think of new, bold and bright ideas to
solve an age old problem. In fact - democracy is founded upon liberal principles. But at a certain
stage, when a process is in place… you need an operator and a manager who oversee the process
and make sure everything runs smoothly. Conservatives are good at that, for their aversion to
change and upkeeping what is true and tested (Conerly, 2018).
In conclusion, even though there are noticeable difference in where Liberals and conservatives
stand when it comes to common social issues now like abortion, social issues and economy… in
the grand scheme of things, there will not be much noticeable difference, as the two party and
ideals evolve with (such in the case how Modern Conservatism is similar to Classical
Liberalism) and sustain each other to keep innovating new ideas to benefit the good of the
people.
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