James Hodgkinson: Revitalising a party many see as ‘on life support’ means a big injection of Liberty

James Hodgkinson is a Research Associate at the Adam Smith Institute. He currently serves as a Parish Councillor, and Vice Chairman of the KALC Canterbury Area Committee.

Generations of Conservatives have understood that liberty is not granted by government, but guarded from it. As the state’s reach creeps ever further, that truth is one that we can no longer afford to forget.

Liberty gives people the space to shape their own lives – to decide how to spend their money, choose their own paths, and take the calculated risks that drive progress. A state that restricts the ability of people to make their own decisions is one that does not trust in the common sense and general reasonableness of those under its care.

During their 14 years of power, Conservative governments too often neglected liberty. For many, the ‘Online Safety Act’, which was passed in 2023 with cross-party support, is totemic of the Conservative’s shift away from libertarian values. Message scanning has eroded privacy on encrypted platforms, and burdensome fines force tech companies to err on the side of caution and censor lawful speech and expression.

Governments of all parties seem to forget that people are rational actors who value their liberties, and will find ways around rules that try to take them away. After the Online Safety Act came into force, use of VPN providers in the UK reportedly surged by up to 1,800 per cent as people sought to shield themselves from state surveillance. Instead of promoting safety, such restrictions simply push people into riskier, less regulated corners of the internet, proving how heavy handed control can backfire.

Of course, Conservative nanny state policies extended further than the digital realm. In 2022, it was made mandatory to display calorie counts on menus. The aim was to ‘tackle obesity’. Yet the policy has failed. Obesity rates continue to rise, and numerous studies now suggest that displaying calories on menus exacerbates eating disorders.

Likewise, decisions to increase tobacco duty had the ultimate aim of cutting demand, and improving health. However, all the additional smoking taxes achieved was to fan the flames of the black market, where, according to research by KPMG, one in four cigarettes now originate from. The government is now losing out on any revenue from 25 per cent of UK cigarettes, and, once again, illiberal controls are driving consumers to increasingly unsafe alternatives, with black market cigarettes found to contain dead flies, human excrement, and asbestos, according to the BBC. 

The Conservatives face electoral oblivion. Reform UK are unapologetic in their opposition to ‘nanny-statism’, and the allure of this is clear to voters. Strong condemnation of the ‘Online Safety Act’, and Farage’s penchant for gambling, smoking and drinking have been accompanied by electoral polling which is frankly frightening to Conservatives everywhere.

To win back voters, Conservatives must reconnect with small-state libertarianism. Tory policies should embody the Randian spirit of self-reliance and independence, and the Burkean trust in the wisdom of communities and Britain’s proud liberal traditions.

As the Party begins a period of renewal, it is refreshing to see liberty returning to the heart of its thinking. Commitments to abolish ‘non-crime hate incidents’, which stifle free speech, the stand against a regressive smoking ban, and the growing calls within the Party to repeal the Online Safety Act all point in the right direction.

Conservative Party Conference presents a vital opportunity to continue this forward momentum, and to firmly restate the importance of liberty to British society now and into the future. The Adam Smith Institute’s ‘Rally for Liberty’ means this issue will be firmly on the agenda, but it is clear we must go further.

Libertarian values must be the cornerstone of all future Conservative policymaking. It is the right direction for our country, but would also provide a clear, fresh, and traditionally Conservative identity for a new era of the Party.

Liberty is not just a principle, it is the essence of hope. If we are to be truly hopeful about Britain’s future, we must give people the maximum freedom to shape that future for themselves.