Pink Tory

In Canadian politics, a Pink Tory is a pejorative term for a liberal member of one of the Conservative or Progressive Conservative parties, more liberal than a socialist Red Tory. The term was often derisively applied to the 1971 to 1985 Ontario Progressive Conservative government of Bill Davis[1] by critics on the right, particularly Toronto Sun columnist Claire Hoy.[citation needed] The term was used positively by Ron Dart to describe the political philosophy of Robert Stanfield in the 1968 election as a "sort of pink toryism".[2] In 2002, Jim Flaherty described rival leadership contender Ernie Eves as a "pink" Tory.[3] More recently the term has been used to describe socially progressive Conservatives who support same-sex marriage and are pro-choice.[4]

  1. ^ Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Transcript of Debates (Hansard) May 14, 1992 [1]
  2. ^ Dart, Ron. The North American High Tory Tradition. Page 83
  3. ^ "Ontario Liberal leader takes aim at incoming premier". CBC News. March 25, 2002. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  4. ^ Hutchinson, Brian (January 12, 2006). "The overlooked Tory: The candidate you don't hear about in the Fry-Robinson showdown". National Post.