Not in Our Name

Edited by Simon Burall, Brendan Donnelly, Stuart Weir Foreword by Professor Mary Kaldor

A new, authoritative and important book, highlighting the danger of the executive being able to go to war without parliamentary approval

Within ten days of victory in the 1997 general election, New Labour pledged that its foreign policies would have an 'ethical dimension': countries governed undemocratically and with poor human rights records would be denied UK aid and Britain would 'secure the respect of other nations' for its contribution to keeping the peace of the world.

These policies appeared seriously flawed when in March 2003 Tony Blair persuaded Parliament that Britain should join the invasion of Iraq. Later, when Blair's arguments were exposed as being without foundation, cries were heard that Parliament was no longer the body politic and that democracy itself was under threat.

MPs have little influence on foreign policy and the general public even less. So decisions on going to war, signing treaties, granting aid, promoting development, selling arms or negotiating with the EU, NATO, the WTO and the World Bank are taken by a small elite group comprising the Prime Minister and his close advisers.

Increasingly the public is demanding the explanations behind these decisions - as shown both by the continuing debate over the Iraq war and by the enthusiasm for Live8 and the Make Poverty History campaign.

Not In Our Name looks at Cabinet government and the checks and balances that the Houses of Parliament can impose, the importance of parliamentary committees, Britain's relations with Europe, Britain's global dealings and our general interests abroad. It concludes with a series of recommendations designed to make international policies more accountable and transparent.

'Its research is invaluable in examining what is wrong with our democracy at present' Morning Star

About

Simon Burall is director of the One World Trust. He is co-author of the Global Accountability Report and a trustee of VSO.

Brendan Donnelly is director of the Federal Trust for Education and Research. He is a former member of the European Parliament.

Stuart Weir is an author, journalist, broadcaster and academic. A former editor of The New Statesman and a founder member of Charter88, he is currently Visiting Professor at the Department of Government, University of Essex, and Director of Democratic Audit at the university's Human Rights Centre. He is deeply involved in promoting self-help audits of democracy around the world and has advised parliaments, governments and democratic organisations in many countries, including Iraqi Kurdistan, Latvia, Macedonia, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. His previous books include Not in Our Name: Democracy and Foreign Policy in the UK, Democracy Under Blair, Political Power and Democratic Control in Britain and The Three Pillars of Liberty: Political Rights and Freedoms in the UK.

Professor Mary Kaldor is director of the Centre for the Study of Global Governance at the London School of Economics.