The old right-left axis was largely built around economics. Conservative parties wanted more private economic activity and lower government taxation and spending while their left-leaning foes wanted the opposite. This shook out politically in a simple manner: The right typically won the well-to-do; the left won the poor and working classes; and the two did battle in the middle.  

With the success of the Teals, Democrats and Labour and Liberal Democrats in erstwhile safe Liberal, Republican and Tory seats, politics has changed in Australia, the US and UK.   

What does the new political order mean for the centre-right? Populist working-class voters want protection from the economic and cultural shocks of the modern world. Conservative voters want to protect traditional values in both economics and culture. In some areas — opposition to “woke” ideology, for example — the two sentiments overlap. In others, they clash. Economics will be a big flash point in this unavoidable conflict.