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About Stuart Weir

Stuart Weir is founder of Democratic Audit at the Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, and co-founder of Charter 88. He is a consultant to the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust on the State of the Nation polls.

Articles by Stuart Weir

Head of the UK's tax scandal - is parliament powerless

Stuart Weir 23 October 2011
Margaret Hodge MP is leading a campaign to make HM Revenue and Customs accountable after revelations of cosy deal-making with big corporations.

The European Social Charter turns 50 today, but Britain doesn't belong at the party

Keith Ewing and Stuart Weir 18 October 2011
Today is the 50th anniversary of the European Social Charter on workers' rights. The UK government is not celebrating, as it seeks to squeeze employment rights still further to satisfy corporate interests.

Days of Action: a new pamphlet on protecting the right to strike

Stuart Weir 21 September 2011
Political strikes on weekdays are unlawful in the UK. Now two champions for workers' rights have published a pamphlet challenging this view.

Protest movement in Malawi – can the people rid themselves of the corrupt, paranoid and greedy Bingu wa Mutharika?

Stuart Weir 1 August 2011
18 dead and 41 injured in last week's protest demanding that Bingu wa Mutharika should stand down. The people of Malawi have ample reason for grievance

Blue Labour's controversial ideas are good for Miliband and his party

Stuart Weir 26 July 2011
The Labour party would be the losers if they cut the Blue Labour project adrift due to misjudged comments on immigration. The controversy provoked by Blue Labour ideas is healthy for the party, and a sign that Labour may be able to regenerate itself

Lords reform should redistribute power, not promote "elective dictatorship"

Stuart Weir 21 July 2011
A reformed upper House could provide a check on the power that the executive currently hold in Britain. Yet the proposed reforms would give the House of Lords democratic legitimacy, without extending their powers to hold the executive to account

Book review: Parliamentarians, mavericks and trots

Stuart Weir 20 July 2011
Bob Marshall-Andrews and Richard Wainwright were two MPs who, in very different ways, belonged to the honourable and increasingly rare breed of parliamentarians who brought integrity and a willingness to speak up to the House of Commons, the public and their parties.

Let’s get the Coalition’s position on the benefit cap clear!

Stuart Weir 6 July 2011
The Coalition's benefit cap plans would lead to tens of thousands of families losing their homes. The government, unworried by that reality, is however concerned about the news that the proposal won't save Britain any money after all

Holding the Baby

Stuart Weir 16 June 2011
If we are living in an age of gender equality, why are women still left holding the baby? "Shattered: Modern Motherhood and the Illusion of Equality" is bold enough to ask this question, and propose a set of solutions

Dog whistle politics, Vince Cable and employment rights

Stuart Weir 26 May 2011
With his Employer's Charter, Vince Cable is practically inviting employers to prey on the vulnerable and unprotected. In response, Keith Ewing has written a Charter of Workers' Rights, revealing the stark reality behind a Britain 'open for business'

What next for Britain's purple people?

Stuart Weir 22 May 2011
Those who campaigned for a 'Yes' vote in the recent referendum have lost a battle but the larger cause of democracy in Britain still cries out. What should they do?

The AV vote was a fiasco. But then, UK referendums are undemocratic

Stuart Weir 10 May 2011
Much of the blame for the No to AV vote lays with Nick Clegg, Compass and the Electoral Reform Society. But we must also acknowledge the illegitimate and ultimately undemocratic nature of referendums in the UK

We must let Muslim women who wear the veil speak for themselves

Stuart Weir 12 April 2011
We all know what our politicians think of Muslim women who wear the veil. But the women themselves are rarely asked to explain their decision. Now, as the veil is banned in France, a report is published giving 32 Muslim women in that country a chance to defend their choice.

The Commons debate on Libya: a milestone for British democracy?

Stuart Weir 22 March 2011
The Commons debate on Libya has been dismissed by some as irrelevant, as military intervention has already begun. Yet this is a milestone for democracy, as Cameron has acknowledged the emerging convention that parliamentary approval is required for the deployment of British forces abroad

The Executive Guide to how they control power in Britain

Stuart Weir 19 March 2011
A wandering tourist asking to see a copy of Britain's constitution will get a dusty answer but now Cabinet Ministers have their own guide, which Stuart Weir gives a good fisking

This week's editor

Heather McRobie


Niki Seth-Smith is a freelance journalist and co-editor of OurKingdom.

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