This book provides a fresh, clear, and stimulating approach to civil liberties by tying the law and practice of the subject firmly to democratic and political rights. The author examines the key civil liberties of our democratic age: the right to vote; the rights to life, liberty and security of the person; the freedoms of thought, conscience, expression, association and assembly; the prohibition on torture and inhuman and degrading treatment; and discusses the contemporary challenges that civil liberties face, including globalisation and the war on terror.

Part I: Foundations 1. Introduction 2. Theoretical foundations 3. Democratic freedom and national insecurity Part II: Protecting civil liberties in a democratic state 4. The right to vote 5. The prohibition on torture and the rights to life and security of the person 6. The freedoms of thought, conscience, expression, association and assembly: the right to a political life 7. Freedom of information Part III: Contemporary challenges 8. National security and civil liberties 9. Civil liberties beyond the nation state: the EU 10. Civil liberties in a global age Part IV: Conclusion 11. Renewing civil liberties

Conor Gearty , Director, Centre of the Study of Human Rights and Professor of Human Rights Law, LSE