by Christian Watrin, Ph.D.
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Europe/HL634.cfm
Are the "new" social democratic parties in Europe simply disguised libertarians, still calling themselves "socialist" but basically supporting neoliberal ideas? This has often been claimed in recent public policy debates. For example, in Great Britain it has been claimed that Tony Blair and his "new" Labour Party have continued the economic policies of Margaret Thatcher and her Conservative Party. Equally, the economic reforms in New Zealand, which turned the economy from a sclerotic, collectivist welfare state into a modern, flourishing market economy, were partly initiated by a party from the left. And didn't President Bill Clinton promise to "end welfare as we know it?" And isn't Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD), together with its left-wing Green coalition partner, in the process of abandoning its deep-rooted pacifism of the left by entering the Kosovo war?
Despite the fact that these observations appear to be correct, I do not share the view that the social democratic parties in Europe are born-again liberals in the widest sense of that word, as used in recent debates. (In Europe "liberal" is very often a synonym for "modernity," or a description of the lifestyle and views held by enlightened man. And, contrary to the usage in English-speaking countries, "liberal" is not a term used to describe social democratic values.)