Parliament suspended: The Queen approves Boris Johnson's request to prorogue UK Parliament for one month until October 14

Jacob Jarvis28 August 2019
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Boris Johnson's request to prorogue Parliament has been approved by the Queen.

The Prime Minister asked to temporarily close down the Commons from the second week of September until October 14, when there will be a Queen's Speech to open a new session of Parliament.

He spoke to the Queen on Wednesday morning and a Privy Council meeting was held at Balmoral to sign off Mr Johnson's plan.

Parliament is now to be suspended no earlier than September 9 and no later than September 12, to resume with a Queen's Speech on October 14.

Sources said Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg, who is Lord President of the Council, Lords Leader Baroness Evans and Chief Whip Mark Spencer attended the meeting with the Queen.

The move from the PM has sparked outrage and opposition leaders have written to the monarch in protest, while hundreds of thousands of people signed a petition against the move.

Commons Speaker John Bercow said the plan was a "constitutional outrage" designed to stop Parliament debating Brexit.

Boris Johnson made the request to the Queen on Wednesday morning 

However, the Prime Minister called it "completely untrue" to suggest Brexit was the reason for his decision, insisting he needs a Queen's Speech to set out a "very exciting agenda" of domestic policy.

"There will be ample time on both sides of that crucial October 17 summit, ample time in Parliament for MPs to debate the EU, to debate Brexit, and all the other issues," Mr Johnson said.

The Commons was expected to sit in the first two weeks of September and then break for the conference recess - although MPs had been planning to vote against leaving Westminster for the autumn party gatherings in late September and early October to allow more time to consider Brexit.

Mr Johnson's move will now ensure that the Commons is not sitting during the period and MPs will return on the day of the Queen's Speech.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson - In pictures

PMQ session in London
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Mr Bercow led a barrage of withering criticism of the Prime Minister, claiming he was committing an “offence against the democratic process”.

He added: “However it is dressed up, it is blindingly obvious that the purpose of prorogation now would be to stop Parliament debating Brexit and performing its duty in shaping a course for the country.

“Shutting down Parliament would be an offence against the democratic process and the rights of Parliamentarians as the people’s elected representatives.”

Former Chancellor Philip Hammond stressed it would be a “constitutional outrage if Parliament” were prevented from holding the Government to account “at a time of national crisis”.

Rebel Tory leader Dominic Grieve also tore into the Prime Minister for “playing an extremely dirty game”.

He told Sky News: “This is tantamount to a coup really against Parliament... I’m fairly confident that he will not find it easy to get his way.”

Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said in a letter to the monarch on Wednesday he "protested in the strongest possible terms on behalf of my party".

He added: "I believe all the other opposition parties are going to join in with this."

Former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas has wrote to the PM, urging him to reconsider his decision.

"Your utter disregard for basic democratic standards, the sovereignty of Parliament and the rights of voters to representation is deeply insulting to - and worrying for - every UK resident," the MP wrote to the Prime Minister.

"Your duty as Prime Minister is to bring people back together and find ways forward that can re-unite our country, yet you have chosen a very different path."

Meanwhile, a petition demanding that moves to suspend Parliament are halted had more than 850,000 signatures.

Hitting 100,000 meant it will be considered for debate by MPs.

The Queen has approved Boris Johnson's plan to prorogue Parliament (file image)
Victoria Jones/PA

The petition, which was created by Mark Johnston on Parliament's website, states that Parliament should not be prorogued unless there is another extension of the Brexit deadline or the idea of leaving the European Union is scrapped altogether.

It says: "Parliament must not be prorogued or dissolved unless and until the Article 50 period has been sufficiently extended or the UK's intention to withdraw from the EU has been cancelled."

The pound plunged more than a cent against the dollar and almost a cent against the euro as news emerged of the planned shutdown of Parliament, fuelling fears of an EU crash-out, before recovering some ground.

Despite the backlash in many quarters, DUP leader Arlene Foster said she had spoken directly with Mr Johnson about his plans and he was "well within his rights" to suspend Parliament.

Mrs Foster said the Queen's Speech would also offer an opportunity to bring focus back to Northern Ireland, with the renewal of her party's confidence and supply deal with the Conservatives.

"I think the Prime Minister is well within his rights to look for a Queen's Speech - he wants to set out his domestic agenda," she said.

"It gives us the opportunity here in Northern Ireland, through ourselves, to bring a focus back to Northern Ireland again, particularly around the confidence and supply agreement, and I look forward to engaging with the Prime Minister over the coming weeks."

As news of the plan broke, US President Donald Trump reaffirmed his support for Mr Johnson by wading into debate over blocking a no-deal Brexit.

The US President insisted it would be “very hard" for Jeremy Corbyn to seek a no confidence vote" because Mr Johnson is "exactly what the UK has been looking for."

This came days after his meeting with Mr Johnson at the G7 summit, where he spoke warmly about the PM.

In the evening, there were protests against the move held in Parliament Square.

Thousands of people protested against plans to in London, Edinburgh and other cities within hours of it being announced.

The decision to suspend Parliament was also criticised as an "affront" to Britain's democracy by parliamentary experts.

Hansard Society director Dr Ruth Fox said: "The Government's decision to prorogue Parliament may not be unconstitutional or unlawful but it is an affront to parliamentary democracy.

"The Government's understandable desire to bring this long session to an end and outline a new legislative programme in a Queen's Speech could be met with a prorogation of one to two weeks' duration.

"Anything longer than this is both unnecessary and beyond the norm."

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