Editing British-American Project (section)

==Goals==
Established in 1985, BAP was created to help maintain and enrich the [[Special Relationship (United Kingdom–United States)|long-standing relationship]] between the United Kingdom and the United States. The Project was the brainchild of [[Nick Butler]], an economist at [[BP]], who at that time was also a prospective [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] parliamentary candidate.<ref name="Beckett_2004"/> Along with others in both countries who viewed the special relationship favorably, he had become concerned about a growing tide of anti-American sentiment among his generation in the UK. Butler's response was to propose a series of conferences, developing relationships between the participants and broadening understanding.<ref name="Beckett_2004"/>

A US BAP organiser describes the BAP network as committed to "grooming leaders" while promoting "the leading global role that [the US and Britain] continue to play".<ref name="R000665">{{cite news | first=John | last=Pilger | title=Tainted hands across the water | date=13 December 2007 | url=http://www.newstatesman.com/media/2007/12/pilger-bap-values-british | work=New Statesman | accessdate=2012-11-26 | archive-date=2013-05-08 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130508063953/http://www.newstatesman.com/media/2007/12/pilger-bap-values-british | url-status=dead }}</ref>