Essay plan on conservtism' disagreements on the economy

“To what extent do conservatives agree on the state’s role in the economy?” [24]

Intro

Conservatives have split into several different branches, each with their own specific views on the state’s role in the economy, from neo-liberal right wing views, to ones that may be seen as being left wing and more interventionist. I believe that conservatives disagree to a large extent on the state’s role in the economy, and I will be arguing this through their agreements and disagreements on the welfare state and the theories that should control economic planning, or a lack thereof.

P1 – The welfare state

Supp. point: Neo-liberal conservatives believe that there should be no welfare to the poorest in society...

Supp. evidence: ...because Robert Nozick believe that giving welfare to the poorest created a dependency culture in which they stopped trying to get richer and relied on the welfare. Neo-liberals also believed in minimal state intervention and no taxes, meaning that the welfare state could not be funded by taxpayers money, and that it should not be given out, as to do so would mean that the state is getting involved in people’s lives too much.

Supp. explanation: This shows how neo-liberal conservatives believe that there should be no welfare state, because they believe in negative freedom and that the state should effectively leave everyone alone to maintain the individual freedoms that they believe that everyone is entitled to.

Opp. point: However, one-nation conservatives believe that the welfare state is a vital part of society.

Opp. evidence: Edmund Burke believed that state sponsored welfare is necessary to keep an organic society bound together. He believed that everyone had a part to play in society and that in order for that to remain an operational theory, the poorest needed to be supported so that they can remain a part of the organic society, and not revolt against the status-quo, as this would be damaging to society.

Opp. explanation: This demonstrates one-nation conservative’s support of the welfare state as their view of the state is paternalistic, so the state, the top of the hierarchy, should support the bottom of the hierarchy to maintain social cohesion. It is the principle of noblesse oblige, where the state needs to support the…