Boris Johnson to Double Down on Prorogation, Suspending Parliament Again This Week

In a bold move that swiftly follows the United Kingdom Supreme Court ruling the previous suspension of Parliament by the government unlawful, the government is to request a second suspension as early as the weekend.

Lord President of the Privy Council Jacob Rees-Mogg will visit British Monarch Queen Elizabeth II again to ask for her formal assent for Parliament to be suspended in the coming days — a mere formality required by the British constitution but one that has attained a significant amount of controversy in recent days — following the annulment of the previous prorogation last week.

While the UK’s Supreme Court ruled the last prorogation, which would have lasted from the start of September through to mid-October, was unlawful because the judges believed it had been called to silence Britain’s anti-Brexit House of Commons, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has insisted the suspension was necessary to begin a new session. Indeed, the present Parliament is the longest-lived in modern British political history.

Court to Rule if Boris Can Be Jailed for Refusing to Delay Brexit https://t.co/i6gXLyVUJ1

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Arguing again that a new session is still required so the government can bring forward its domestic agenda for post-Brexit Britain, prorogation is to be attempted for a second, much shorter period, British newspaper The Times reports.

This prorogation could last just days in comparison to the last, with a suspension of just three days to allow the Palace to be prepared for the arrival of the Queen — again a requirement of Britain’s constitution that a new Parliamentary session be commenced with a Queen’s speech made from the throne — to take place.

Speaking at the time the previous prorogation was cancelled by the Supreme Court, Mr Johnson said:

As I say, I strongly disagree with this decision of the supreme court, I have the utmost respect for our judiciary, I don’ think this was the right decision I think that the prerogative of prorogation has been used for centuries without this kind of challenge. It is perfectly usual to have Queen’s speech, that’s what we want to do.

More importantly, let’s be in no doubt there are a lot of people who want to frustrate Brexit. There are a lot of people who want to stop this country coming out of the EU. We have a parliament that is unable to be prorogued, doesn’t want to have an election, and I think it is time we took things forward.

…as the law currently stands, the UK leaves the EU on October the 31st come what may, but the interesting, exciting thing for us now is to get a good deal and that’s what we are working on. And I’ll be honest with you… it is not made much easier by this kind of stuff in Parliament and the courts. Obviously getting a deal is not made much easier against this background but we’ve got to get on and do it.

…As the law stands we leave on October the 31st and I am very hopeful that we will get a deal, and I think what the people of the country want is to see Parliamentarians coming together, working in the national interest to get this thing done, and that is what we are going to do.