Cutting Down the Oak – How the Tories Betrayed Their Tradition

Burnham is in, and Starmer is out. A change of Prime Minister brings a change to the philosophy at the heart of government, a focus on devolution in an attempt to “bring growth to every postcode” and “bring back hope” to politics. These are progressive causes that many people, including myself, agree with – these are reasons that build a left-wing case for returning power to local communities. However, the original advocate for this approach sat in the opposite political camp. The conservative political theorist and politician, Edmund Burke (1729-1797), set out a philosophy focused on “localism”, yet his political heirs remain conspicuously silent when they should be devolution’s biggest advocates.   

Burke was an 18^th-century political philosopher and a Member of Parliament, whose writings created much of the conservatism we know today. In response to the French Revolution, Burke constructed a philosophy that aimed to conserve local traditions and communities, arguing that the rights and liberties we enjoy are not inalienable but are provided by local traditions. This held that communities must be allowed to have self-determination in preserving or altering their traditions to maintain order, and not be imposed on by a central government or an idealistic revolutionary. These ideas were foundational to the modern Conservative Party and provided a direct inspiration to Victorian Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli in creating a tradition of conservatism that aimed to positively empower local communities and achieve social cohesion. 

While negative aspects of Disraeli’s conservatism fell away, namely his imperialism, the localism articulated by Burke survived within the party’s tradition despite various ideological leaders, from One-Nationer Stanley Baldwin in the 1930s to the New Right’s Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s. In 2006, this was the tradition referenced by David Cameron as the party’s logo was changed to the “English Oak”, a symbol emblematic of the steady localist tradition that had persisted for so long, a tradition reflected in policy as Cameron’s government saw the creation of metro mayors and the devolution of police powers. Even the disgraced Boris Johnson was once the Mayor of London before his ascent to Downing Street. Therefore, the modern conservative party should be the strongest advocate of devolution, yet the shadow frontbench stays silent, seemingly hostile to the roots of the logo they so proudly campaign with.

That being said, there is a Burkean argument to oppose devolution: that the devolution model first formed by Tony Blair arguably imposes structures through a bureaucratic central government, failing to address the real issues facing local communities, instead evolving into a system of regional mayors, who often have weak local support. This argument keeps the Burkean localism but argues devolution should be done differently, through empowering the local councils and community bodies that actually understand the challenges their own neighbourhoods face. Yet, that is not the argument taken by the Conservatives. Kemi Badenoch instead takes an axe to the English Oak, by dismissing devolution as “not a silver bullet”, she shies away from a principled localist argument and the opportunity to push Burnham further on devolution. 

Since becoming leader in 2024, Kemi Badenoch has routinely had the opportunity to pitch a vision that adapts Burke for the modern age, a vision that accepts central government is needed for matters such as defence but still firmly believes in giving power to local communities. A conservatism focused on giving back control, not taking it. Yet, her apparent refusal to take a principled stand on a defining conservative issue damns her and her party, revealing the fact that the Conservatives continually decide to cast off their beliefs and obsessively chase the devolution-sceptic Reform UK down the populist right rabbit hole. The opportunity for a more compassionate conservatism is being sacrificed in the name of winning votes and in doing so, Badenoch is sacrificing the soul of the oldest political party in the UK. 

Branch by branch, the once-great English Oak is being cut down by its so-called keepers, until all that is left is a dead husk plastered on a blue rosette. That is a conservative party refusing to conserve its own tradition, a party on the road to extinction.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/NCVO London (Conservative Party Conference 2011)

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