’Today it is not even allowed to say that the family works best with a stable marriage of a man and a woman’ – according to Roger Scruton's professional heirs

How do you experience, to what extent conservative thinking is typical of British women today?

Merrie Cave: Unfortunately, there are not too many conservative women in the country, at least they are barely represented at a higher level. There are, of course, those who work in the Conservative Party and head the Conservative offices or help, for example, to run the elections, but apart from them, there are just a few female intellectuals who also convey Scruton's ideas. I have to add: many nice people, hardworking women, mothers of families, and housewives support conservative values, but they are hardly connected to public life. Perhaps their conservative thinking does not come so much from instinct, as they follow their parents or even their husbands in this, or they simply cannot stand socialism.

However, in the recent past, they have had such great role models as Queen Elizabeth II or former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Did they influence British women, or show them a direction in behavior or appearance?

Merrie Cave: Most of the British women intellectuals respected and loved the Queen very much for her courage, steadfastness, and the way she behaved in a wide variety of situations. It was also her virtue that no one could ever know what she was really thinking. And many people, myself included, also liked Margaret Thatcher. They say she put too much emphasis on the markets, but I think she had to, because at that time we were almost a socialist country, and we had to change direction. And politics is like a seesaw: you don't want too much or too little of anything. It has to be considered.

Anyway, Margaret Thatcher appeared at the last minute to save us from real socialism.

An increasing number of women living in the UK come from immigrant families. They may have different ideas about women's roles, but do they also influence British thinking, or do they rather adapt to it?

Merrie Cave: Unfortunately, most people don't really adapt. There are typically fewer conflicts with Hindus, they fit well into English society, and it is no coincidence that the current prime minister is Hindu, as well. This is not the case with Muslims. Among them, some men – with respect to the exception – exploit liberal attitudes and disrespect women. Even in extreme cases, they will not be arrested, because positive discrimination works in their case. Until now, the police have been reluctant to arrest people with such protected characteristics, so even in my own city I have to be very careful. In some neighbourhoods, women hardly dare leave their homes for safety. Among Muslims, there are those who follow a completely separate path and do not join the majority in the same way as Hindus, for example.

It’s important what values ​​are left for the next generation. What is the current prestige of child-rearing in British society?

Alistair Miller: Frustratingly low. Families receive little financial help for this, I know it well because my wife and I raised children. We have experienced that it actually requires two incomes, which means a lot of pressure on those involved. The other difficulty is that many centuries of practice prove: the family works best with a stable marriage of a man and a woman, but this is not even allowed to be said today. Because then what about the rights of trans people? And what about the rights of homosexuals? Traditional family values are now taboo because if you say them, you offend sexual minorities, single mothers, and who knows who else.

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Image is an illustration - Photo: Unplash

How do you see, in what situations may women experience prejudice in your country?

Alistair Miller: My experience is that women generally enjoy full equality today. However, they have current disputes with trans activists, for example, about unisex toilets. Many theaters and even some schools have introduced unisex bathrooms, which certainly causes problems for women who do not like to share the restroom with members of the opposite sex. Because what if a man just claims to be a woman, who can question him?

Apparently, women live with equal rights, but at the same time it is difficult for them to stay at home to raise children, they have to quickly return to work. It's not good, but if I speak out against it, they call me sexist.

And what about women's advancement opportunities in the field of employment?

Alistair Miller: I think they are in a good position there. If, for example, they want to become managers, they are no longer hindered by any discrimination. In fact, they are now in a better position than men. More and more women are becoming leaders, while previously, as we know, men were more likely to be employed if they had the same characteristics. Now the situation is even more favorable for women if they belong to an ethnic minority, have limited mobility, or have other protected characteristics. Because the assumption is that a white, straight man has the job opportunities by default, while they slowly have the hardest time of all groups. But I must emphasize again: today, if a woman were to have many children, she needs more and more money. It is difficult for her to stay at home unless she is willing to live on a social allowance. Most people cannot afford more than two children. I earn more than average, but as I said, it was still difficult to support the children when my wife stayed home with them. It wouldn't have been possible without family support.

Merrie Cave: I belong to an earlier generation, but I remember teaching part-time as a mother for a living. You see many challenged children these days and it is often because their mothers went back to work too soon.

Equality has become extreme in many ways, even though people recognize that men and women are different in so many ways. This is not discrimination, but a fact of life.

What's wrong with it anyway? There are fields that men are better suited for, such as being a fireman and rescuing people from a burning building. If I say that men have more power for this, they think I’m sexist. There is a lot of enthusiasm for employing many more women in certain roles, but perhaps we shouldn't in the armed forces, especially on the front line. But if I don't need absolute equality, then I'm sexist.

Are you also interested in topics such as abortion, and possibly related to religious issues?

Alistair Miller: I think abortion is an extremely difficult issue. I don't even understand why this is still on the agenda today, when there are so many contraceptive options available. I am not Catholic, but I really sympathize with the Catholic position, because it is a position that respects human life. In Great Britain, Catholics are demonized for daring to say that the unborn child is holy, even though I think this is the most honorable position from a moral point of view. It's just not fashionable in liberal circles.

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Right, Merrie Cave and Alistair Miller, in conversation at Scruton - Photo: Scruton Community Space

Overall, how open do you feel British society is to conservative values?

Alistair Miller: It's sad, but the term conservative is now considered a swear word, especially in academia. I also publish in the scientific field, and I almost have to avoid this word if I don't want my work to be belittled. Used in a positive sense, it at least makes publishing more difficult. Therefore, I prefer to disguise myself as a social justice warrior and move in areas where I can subtly challenge extremes.

Of course, I still have to be careful, because towards us conservative means something like this: reactionary, narrow-minded, xenophobic. Few people openly admit that they think this way.

The situation of expression of opinion is especially bad in education.

Yet you carry on all that you inherited from Roger Scruton. What is the most important message?

Alistair Miller: Which one should I highlight? Perhaps that true conservatism is based on loyalty to the local community. Or there is that wonderful quote that Scruton said a few years ago, not long before his death, which summed up a lot of things: the difference between conservatism and socialism, and perhaps liberalism as well, is that at the heart of conservatism is love: the love of our home, our country, our people, our community. I think liberalism, on the other hand, often stems from some kind of rebellion and resentment. Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on cohesion and love.