Nanny state is a term of
British origin that conveys a view that a government or its policies are overprotective or interfering unduly with
personal choice. The term "nanny state" likens government to the role that a
nanny has in child rearing. An early usage of the term comes from
Conservative British
MP Iain Macleod who referred to "what I like to call the nanny state" in his column "Quoodle" in the December 3, 1965, edition of
The Spectator.