Yesterday we noted what the next generation of Conservative MPs think about some key issues. We also asked our sample of candidates a question that attempted to find out whether they saw politics as largely about service or leadership.
It's impossible to read much into the question and answers but 36% (24 candidates) agreed that "politics is primarily about serving the people and understanding their concerns." 64% (42 candidates) thought that "politics is primarily about doing what is best for the country and being willing to challenge and lead public opinion."
Our final question asked: Why are you a Conservative?
Key themes that emerged in the answers were a love of freedom, distrust of government, a belief in individual responsibility and patriotism.
The verbatim responses (of those who answered this question and who cannot be identified by their answers) are posted below:
- Trust the people
- Because I believe in one nation, freedom from State intervention, inclusivity and empowering people to achieve
- I believe people should have the right to make their own choices in life and to be given the opportunity to exercise that right.I am a "doer not a done for" but recognise that others may need to be supported.Conservatives are caring but not controlling.
- I believe in individual choice and opportunity for all.
- I believe people should have the right to make their own choices in life and to be given the opportunity to exercise that right.I am a "doer not a done for" but recognise that others may need to be supported.Conservatives are caring but not controlling.
- I believe in individual choice and opportunity for all.
- I believe that people should have freedom and choice within their daily lives. This very simple concept is central to the Conservative vision for our country.
- Because I believe in order, discipline and personal freedom.
- I am a Conservative because I believe that individuals and families generally know what is best for themselves and how best to spend their own money. Government is not good at allocating resources.
- Because I believe in freedom, individual choice and oppose intervention by the state.
- TO PROTECT CORE SOCIAL VALUES AND BELIEFS.
- because I support the NHS and this government has failed to deliver, because I want young people to have the best education and this government has failed to deliver, because over the last 10 years we have seen the rise in the far-right because this government has lost the confidence of the british people over immigration, because people have been robbed of their hard earned money and have not seen the benefits of their tax contributions, fundamentally I believe that a conservative administration will focus on delivery and is hungry again to lead this great country
- I believe in free markets and in people making their own decisions not government, but at the same time caring for those who need it.
- I believe in the institutions of this country, an organic rather than an artificial approach to political development, a small state and a strong nation, freedom of the individual and the role of government being to create opportunity.
- I believe Conservatives offer opportunity rather than hand outs. I believe the great leaps forward for Britain have been the result of conservative thinkers.
- Because I believe in freedom of the individual.
- I want to help and inspire people to meet their dreams and aspirations and believe that through doing this we can create a stronger society.
- I believe in an opportunity society that triumphs individuals and communities. I believe that whilst the state often has worthy aspirations it is a blunt instrument that typically fails to deliver.
- Margaret Thatcher's shining example & to implement the principles of Thatcherism.
- Because I believe in a smaller state, in the ability and right of people to make important decisions about themselves, their families, their communities.
- Because I believe in freedom, the right to determine my own life as far as possible and in a state that is subservient to the people, not the other way round
- I believe in the freedoms and the responsibilities of the individual citizen as opposed to an overbearing and intrusive state.
- Because I believe in a free market economy, low taxation, minimal regulation, the nation state, liberty, freedom, strong defence and the rule of law
- Because I believe in people. I believe that they know what is best for them and their families. I believe in big people and small Government and that Government exists to serve people and act as a facilitator to allow them to make the best of their potential. We need to stop putting Government first and start putting people first. We need to trust the people.
- Phew! If I had some more time I promise I'd write a good essay! Choice, opportunity, helping people to help others, less State more personal responsibility and citizenship, lower taxes, safety net but not benefit culture creation which kills self-esteem in the longer term, etc!
- freedom of choice, freedom of speech and not a fear of political correctness, smaller government. Protection of our British identity.
- Because I believe in pragmatism over dogma and because I believe in freedom over a central state.
- Because I believe that if you have a problem, the first place you should look is in the mirror.
- I am a Conservative because I believe that people do best when allowed to make decisions for themselves and people should be allowed to go about their daily lives without too much inteference from Government. As a Conservative, I am always mindful of and helpful towards those that cannot help themselves. I am also sure that Conservatism is the route to aspiration and opportunity and not the interference and control doctrine as displayed by our political opponents.
- Conservative principles of freeing up people to manage their own lives whilst having a safety net for those that can't, is where we do best when in power.
- Because I believe in freedom, liberty and individual responsibility none of which are believed in by the other parties.
- because i believe in a small state which seeks to minimise it's interference in the daily lives of it's citizens
- because I believe in small government
- Belief in the rule of law and the freedom of the idividual. A belief that everyone is equal before the law and a hatred of patronage and favouritism. A love of and pride in Britain. A belief in the power of the idividual. A love of democracy. True liberalism. Freemarket economics. Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher and David Cameron.
- I believe in personal freedom and the right to self determination. But above all, we should empower people to improve their own situation.
- Because I believe that the individual is more important than the State.
- I am a one nation conservative. I believe that people generally make better choices in their own lives and communities. I believe less is more when it comes to the State and how one exercises choices, in all aspects of life (subject to a safety net for the vulnerable). Conservatives plan for the long term with a conservative outlook, and have a natural reluctance to change that which works - but view things with pragmatic realism.
- Because I believe in personal liberty tempered by a social responsibility to others. I believe that the party has always stood for that and the successful left-wing damning of the Thatcher years as being solely about the first and not the latter, was a disgrace that our party was not electorally in a position to defend.
- I believe people are better at running their own lives than Government. I believe Conservatism throughout it's history has been more innovative, forward-looking and delivers real democracy and justice to the people.
- Because I'm optimistic about people and their ability to decide what's best for themselves.
- Conservatives beliefs are in tune with man as a fallible being
- Because I believe that, on balance, individuals, families and companies are better able than the state to take the key decisions that affect them.
- Because the Conservatives develop policies that work because they are based on human nature and evidence. Most political parties want a better world - often the desired outcomes are the same, but the way that we want to get there is more based on common sense, pragmatism and an appreciation of history and the country.
- Because 1. All my life experiences have taught me the fundamental necessity of a culture of responsibility for a successful, free and ordered society and economy, and 2. I believe that the more liberal, global and laissez faire our economy becomes, the more people we all need to belong to something at home that provides order, structure, meaning and reassurance. So contrary to the liberal orthodoxy I believe modern economic liberalism in fact demands societal conservatism. To be a functional society in a global world (dis)order, Britain (and the communities that make it up) will need more than ever to have a sense of its own identity, culture and standards. I believe we are a successful economy but an unhappy and disfunctional society because our leaders have thought that social liberalism is the only and obvious reaction to economic liberalism. The challenge for our generation must be to do for our society what Mrs. Thatcher did for our economy in the sense of a radical revolution to unlock a culture of personal responsibility across public services and society.
- I deeply believe in the need for social mobility and the reward of hard work and aspiration.
- Because I was born a free Briton - and I want to die that way.
- Because I believe in three fundamental values: 1 - that the state should not interfere with people's desire to get on with their lives in a law abiding manner. 2- that the state should pick people up when thay fall off the ladder and help them back on again; or support people who will never make it onto th eladder. 3 - that the traditional family is the fundamental building block of society and this should be protected.
- Because I believe that people make decisions for themselves, their families and their neighbours better than Whitehall bureaucrats do.
- I believe in individual liberty and a reduction in the power of the state. That liberty should include economic liberty and social liberty.
- Because I believe I believe in messy freedom and self-reliance rather than 'bread and circuses'.
- Because I believe that people, not governments, know what is best for them and should be allowed to get on with their lives without unnecessary interference and intervention from the state.
- I believe in both freedom and responsibility. Conservatism is a philosophy uniting both.
- Conservative goal is to empower people, to have small government and to support individuals when they need it.