Australia In
Australia,
the New Right refers to a late 1970s/1980s onward movement both within and outside of the
Liberal/
National Coalition which advocates
economically liberal and increased
socially conservative policies (as opposed to the
old right which advocated
economically conservative policies and "
small-l liberals" with more
socially liberal views). Unlike the United Kingdom and United States, but like neighbouring New Zealand, the 1980s saw the
Australian Labor Party initiate
Third Way economic reforms, which bear some familiarity to New Right ideology. After the
John Howard Coalition ended the 13-year rule of the
Hawke-Keating Labor government at the
1996 federal election, economic reforms were taken further, some examples being wholesale labor market deregulation (e.g.,
WorkChoices), the introduction of a
Goods and Services Tax (GST), the privatisation of the telecommunications monopoly
Telstra, and sweeping
welfare reform including "
work for the dole". The
H. R. Nicholls Society, a think tank which advocates full workplace deregulation, contains some Liberal MPs as members and is seen to be of the New Right.
Economic liberalism is also called
economic rationalism in Australia. The term
economic rationalism was first used by Labor's
Gough Whitlam. to describe a market-oriented form of social democracy, but its meaning subsequently evolved. It is a philosophy which tends to advocate a
free market economy, increased
deregulation,
privatisation, lower
direct taxation and higher
indirect taxation, and a reduction of the size of the
welfare state. The politicians favouring New Right ideology were referred to as
dries, while those advocating continuation of the economic policies of the
post-war consensus, typically
Keynesian economics, or were more socially liberal, were called
wets (the term
wets was similarly used in Britain to refer to those
Conservatives who opposed
Thatcherite economic policies, but
dries in this context was much rarer in British usage).
Brazil The New Right in Brazil has grown sharply in recent years within population, intelligentsia, and academia. That is mainly due to a generalized discontent with the left-wing government and its policies. This new movement distinguishes itself from what is known in Brazil as
old right, which was ideologically associated to the
Brazilian military government,
União Democrática Nacional (National Democratic Union), and
Integralism. It is identified by positive views regarding democracy, personal freedom, free-market capitalism, reduction of bureaucracy, privatization of state-run companies, tax cuts,
parliamentary, political reform. It rejects "
cultural Marxism",
modern socialism and
populism. There have been two major phenomena relating to the rise of the new Brazilian right: the
Free Brazil Movement, which has managed to bring together millions of people on demonstrations against the government in March 2015; and the creation of the
New Party (Partido Novo) and
Libertários, the first liberal party since the
First Brazilian Republic. Some Brazilian new-right thinkers are:
Kim Kataguiri, and his movement
Movimento Brasil Livre (Free Brazil Movement),
Roberto Campos,
Wilson Martins,
Olavo de Carvalho,
Paulo Francis,
José Guilherme Merquior,
Bruno Tolentino,
France In France, the New Right (or
Nouvelle Droite) has been used as a term to describe a modern think-tank of French political philosophers and intellectuals led by
Alain de Benoist. Another noted intellectual, who was once part of Alain de Benoist's GRECE, is
Guillaume Faye. Although accused by some critics as being "
far-right" in their beliefs, they themselves claim that their ideas transcend the traditional
left–right divide and actively encourages free debate. France also has one Identitarian New Right group (which is connected with Thule Seminar in Germany); that is
Terre et Peuple of Pierre Vial, who was once an integral part and founding member of Alain de Benoist's GRECE.
Germany In Germany, the
Neue Rechte (literally,
new right) consists of two parts: the
Jungkonservative (literally, young conservatives), who search for followers in the civic part of the population; and, secondly, the "Nationalrevolutionäre" (national revolutionists), who are looking for followers in the ultra-right part of the German population and use the rhetoric of right-wing politicians such as
Gregor and
Otto Strasser. Another noted New Right group in Germany is Thule Seminar of Pierre Krebs. His views diverged from those of former
Prime Minister of Greece Konstantinos Mitsotakis, whose legacy expressed the most important principle of its recently elected leadership, including
Adonis Georgiadis, who had been a member only since leaving
far-right Popular Orthodox Rally in 2012.
Iran In Iran,
New Right and the term
Modern Right () is associated with the
Executives of Construction Party, which has split from the
Islamic Right (); both
Modern Right and
Traditional Right (or "
Principlists") are separated from
Islamic Right, but
Modern Right is part of the
Reformists.
Israel New Right is a right-wing political party in Israel, founded in 2018 and led by
Ayelet Shaked and
Naftali Bennett. The party aims to be a party open to both secular and
religious people. The party advocates the preservation of a strong right-wing in Israel.
Japan The Japanese New Right, or
Minzoku-ha, is a Japanese
ethno-nationalist faction that emerged after
postwar Japan. The Japanese New Right is known to be more
anti-American (反米保守, lit. "anti-American
conservative") than mainstream conservatives or
Japanese nationalists. It originated among the student agitations of the 1960s and 1970s, many of whom were followers of
Yukio Mishima. In postwar Japan, mainstream conservatives prioritized "anti-communism" (反共主義) over Japanese "ethnic nationalism" (民族主義) in the context of the Cold War; however,
minzoku-ha was critical of the
pro-Americanism of mainstream conservatives.
Minzoku-ha grew up influenced by Yukio Mishima's nationalism and the
Japanese New Left.
Netherlands The
New Right (NR) was the name of a far-right/nationalist political party in the Netherlands from 2003 to 2007. The
Party for Freedom (PVV), founded in 2005 and led by
Geert Wilders, also is a New Right movement. Since March 2017,
Forum for Democracy is another New Right party in the Dutch parliament.
New Zealand In New Zealand, as in Australia, it was the
Labour Party that initially adopted New Right economic policies.
Rogernomics involved
monetarist approaches to controlling inflation, corporatisation of government departments, and the removal of
tariffs and
subsidies, while the party also pursued social liberal stances such as decriminalisation of male homosexuality, pay equity for women and adopting a nuclear-free policy. This meant temporary realignment within New Zealand politics, as New Right middle-class voters voted Labour at the
1987 New Zealand general election in approval of its economic policies. At first, Labour corporatised many former government departments and state assets, then emulated the Conservative
Thatcher administration and privatised them altogether during Labour's second term of office. However, recession and privatisation together led to increasing strains within the Labour Party, which led to schism, and the exit of
Jim Anderton and his
NewLabour Party, which later formed part of the
Alliance Party with the Greens and other opponents of New Right economics. However, dissent and schism were not to be limited to the Labour Party and Alliance Party alone. During the Labour Party's second term in office, the Opposition
New Zealand National Party (popularly known as
National) selected
Ruth Richardson as Opposition finance spokesperson, and when National won the
1990 general election, Richardson became Minister of Finance, while
Jenny Shipley became Minister of Social Welfare. Richardson introduced deunionisation legislation, known as the Employment Contracts Act, in 1991, while Shipley presided over social welfare benefit cuts, designed to reduce
welfare dependency – both core New Right policy initiatives. In the early 1990s, maverick National Party MP
Winston Peters also came to oppose New Right economic policies and led his elderly voting bloc out of the National Party. As a result, his
New Zealand First anti-monetarist party has been a partner in coalition governments led by both National (1996–98) and Labour (2005–08 and 2017–20). Due to the introduction of the
MMP electoral system, a New Right "Association of Consumers and Taxpayers" party, known as
ACT New Zealand, was formed by ex-Labour New Right–aligned Cabinet Ministers like
Richard Prebble and others, and maintaining existing New Right policy initiatives such as the Employment Contracts Act, while also introducing U.S.-style
welfare reform. ACT New Zealand aspired to become National's centre-right coalition partner but has been hampered by lack of party unity and populist leadership that often-lacked strategic direction. As for Labour and National themselves, their fortunes have been mixed. Labour was out of office for most of the nineties, only regaining power when
Helen Clark led it to victory and a Labour/Alliance coalition and centre-left government (1999–2002). However, the Alliance disintegrated in 2002. National was defeated in 1999 due to the absence of a suitable stable coalition partner, given New Zealand First's partial disintegration after Winston Peters abandoned the prior National-led coalition. When
Bill English became leader of National in 2001, it was thought that he might lead the party away from its prior hardline New Right economic and social policies, but his indecisiveness and lack of firm policy direction led to ACT New Zealand gaining the New Right middle-class voting basis in 2002. When
Don Brash became leader, New Right middle-class voters returned to National's fold, causing National's revival in fortunes at the
2005 New Zealand general election. However, at the same time, ACT New Zealand strongly criticised it for deviating from its former New Right economic policy perspectives, and at the same election, National did little to enable ACT's survival. Don Brash resigned as National party leader, being replaced by
John Key, who was a more moderate National MP. As for the centre-left, Helen Clark and her Labour-led coalition were criticised by ex-Alliance members and non-government organisations for their alleged lack of attention to centre-left social policies, while trade union membership recovered due to Labour's repeal of the Employment Contracts Act 1991 and
labour market deregulation and the deunionisation that had accompanied it in the nineties. It is plausible that Clark and her Cabinet were influenced by
Tony Blair and his British Labour Government, which pursued a similar balancing act between social and fiscal responsibility while in government.
Poland In Poland, a
conservative libertarian and
eurosceptic political party
Congress of the New Right (New Right) was founded on 25 March 2011 from former political parties
Freedom and Lawfulness (WiP) and
Real Politics Union (UPR) by
Janusz Korwin-Mikke. It is backed up by various voters, some conservatives, far left people who want to legalize marijuana and citizens who endorse
free market and
capitalism .
South Korea In South Korea, the
South Korean New Right movement is a Korean attempt at
neoconservative politics. The
Lee Myung-bak government led by President
Lee Myung-bak and the conservative
Grand National Party is noted for being a benefactor of the domestic New Right movement.
United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, the term New Right more specifically refers to a strand of Conservatism that
Margaret Thatcher and
Ronald Reagan influenced. Thatcher's style of New Right ideology, known as
Thatcherism, was heavily influenced by the work of
Friedrich Hayek (in particular the book
The Road to Serfdom). They were ideologically committed to
economic liberalism as well as being
socially conservative.
United States In the United States, New Right refers to two historically distinct
conservative political movements. These American New Rights are distinct from and opposed to the more moderate tradition of the so-called
Rockefeller Republicans. The New Right also differs from the
Old Right (1933–55) on issues concerning foreign policy with
neoconservatives being opposed to the
non-interventionism of the Old Right. The first New Right embraced what it called "
fusionism" (an ostensible synthesis of
classical liberal economics, traditional social values, and anti-communism) The second New Right formed a policy approach and electoral apparatus that brought
Ronald Reagan into the
White House in the 1980 presidential election. The New Right was organized in the
American Enterprise Institute and
The Heritage Foundation to counter the so-called "
liberal establishment", which they viewed as a contributor to corruption and mismanagement of the federal government. In elite think tanks and local community organizations alike, new policies, marketing strategies, and electoral strategies were crafted over the succeeding decades to promote strongly conservative policies. The second New Right objected to a perceived decline in morality, including increased drug use,
more public and open displays of sexuality, rising crime rates,
race riots and unrest from
civil rights protesters, and
Vietnam War protesters. The group consists of members who disassociate themselves from mainstream establishment conservatism, while also being disassociated with the white identitarian alt-right. The group consists of factions such as National Conservatives, postliberals, and the Nietzschean right. Other characterizations also include factions such as "the Claremonters", Catholic Integralists and tech authoritarian-libertarians, among others. The group can be characterized as skeptical of mainstream conservatism for being too liberal. Yoram Hazony was quoted at a National Conservative conference saying "We declare independence from neoliberalism, from libertarianism, from what they call classical liberalism, you can give it any name you want, but that set of ideas that sees the atomic individual, the free and equal individual [as highly important in politics]."
Third New Right Figures: •
Ron DeSantis, 46th governor of Florida •
Yoram Hozany, philosopher and chairman of the
Edmund Burke Foundation •
Josh Hawley, United States senator from
Missouri •
Patrick Deneen, political theorist and professor at the
University of Notre Dame •
Marc Andreessen, venture capitalist, co-founder of
Mosaic,
Netscape,
Andreessen Horowitz,
Opsware, and
Ning •
Ben Horowitz, entrepreneur and co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz •
Steve Sailer, columnist and blogger •
Steve Bannon, political strategist, pundit,
White House Chief Strategist •
Michael Anton, essayist, speechwriter, and
Director of Policy Planning •
R. R. Reno, theologian, political philosopher, and editor of the
First Things magazine •
Jonathan Keeperman, owner of Passage Publishing ==See also==