- Saturday 25 May 2013
- My Account
- Logout
- Register
- Login
- News
-
Voices
-
Find by writer
- Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
- Rebecca Armstrong
- Memphis Barker
- Terence Blacker
- Chris Blackhurst
- David Blanchflower
- Archie Bland
- Ian Burrell
- Andrew Buncombe
- Ben Chu
- Patrick Cockburn
- Laura Davis
- Mary Dejevsky
- Grace Dent
- Robert Fisk
- Andrew Grice
- Stefano Hatfield
- Philip Hensher
- Ian Herbert
- Howard Jacobson
- Ellen E Jones
- Alice Jones
- Owen Jones
- Simon Kelner
- Dominic Lawson
- Donald Macintyre
- Lisa Markwell
- Comment
- Campaigns
- Debate
- Editorials
- Letters
- IV Drip
- Archive
- Our Voices
- Commentators
- Columnists
- Democracy 2015
- IV Drip Archive
-
Find by writer
- Sport
- Tech
- Life
- Property
- Arts & Ents
- Travel
- Money
- IndyBest
- Blogs
- Student
Friday 16 June 1995
LETTER:Antecedents of Thatcherism
Sir: No wonder the Tory party is in terminal disarray, if Lord Gilmour, one of its most erudite elder statesmen, is labouring under the misapprehension that "Thatcherism was and is a reversion to Gladstonian Liberalism" - with or without the idealism (Another View, 14 June). It is no such thing. It can best be described as "primitive capitalism" of the kind that flourished before Adam Smith exposed the limitations of unbridled private enterprise, let alone the great Victorians introduced their social "improvements".
Gladstone was criticised by some of his contemporaries for being too "etatiste", which meant that unlike Mrs Thatcher and her heirs he saw a necessary, far-reaching and beneficent role for the state. His belief in the inherent virtue of public service led him to sponsor the Northcote- Trevelyan reforms of the Civil Service, which the Thatcherites are hell- bent on destroying.
Ignorance of our own history is widely recognised as both symptom and cause of our national malaise. How could it be otherwise when that ignorance is so conspicuously entrenched in the party that has governed us for so long?
Yours faithfully,
DAVID GLADSTONE
London, N1
15 June
-
This week's big questions: How best to react to Woolwich? Has Miliband got what it takes? And is Stephen King right about ebooks?
Ian Rankin -
What, let gays get married? We must be bonkers
Mark Steel -
Dogma will always lead to murder. In the end, scepticism is the only answer
A C Grayling -
The Daily Cartoon
-
Stop laying into GPs. We don't deserve it
Dr Clare Gerada
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
Visit York
Find out what The Independent's resident travel expert has to say about one of the most beautiful small cities in the world
Making reading fun for kids
Nook is donating eReaders to volunteers at high-need schools and participating in exclusive events throughout the campaign.
Introducing the 'Get Reading' campaign
Get the latest on The Evening Standard's campaign to get London's children reading.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Related Articles
-
Tottenham midfielder Andros Townsend charged with breaching betting regulations
-
Gareth Bale urged to leave Tottenham for a club with 'culture of victory' by Marcel Desailly
-
Prince William to address Uefa ahead of Champions League final
-
Europa League winners to qualify for Champions League from 2015 - and it won't affect the top four
Get the best in opinion from Independent Voices, straight to your inbox every Thursday lunchtime.
Subscribe
Amol Rajan
A weekly update from the Editor
Day In a Page
Johnny Marr talks relationships and reunions
In pictures: After the flood
Death becomes her: A very modern mortician
School of chop: Learning the art of butchery
The man who's eaten everywhere
A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?