This week, Sam Leith spoke to Francis Fukuyama – the author of ‘The End of History and the Last Man’ and the newly released ‘Liberalism and its Discontents’ on the latest episode of The Book Club. You can watch their conversation below, listen to it here or read this transcript. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Sam Leith: Liberal is a word that means something very different in Tennessee than it does in Muswell Hill. What exactly are the parameters of what you call classical liberalism?
Francis Fukuyama: It does have a very different meaning in the United States than it does in Europe. My definition of it is closer to the European one. Liberalism, in my view, is a system that’s basically a limitation of power based on a rule of law and a constitutional framework that limits the power of executives. It’s based on a number of philosophical presumptions. There’s an element of universalism, because liberals believe that all human beings have an equal set of rights, and that these need to be protected by governments.
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The government’s net-zero noose draws tighter. At energy questions in the House of Commons on Tuesday, the Conservative MP Charlie Dewhirst asked the Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband if the recent report by the National Energy System Operator (Neso) projected higher or lower bills under his policies. Miliband replied that Neso forecast
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