An email leaked to the Observer shows that PM Boris Johnson has enquired about shutting down parliament for five weeks from 9 September. The move could be an attempt to stop MPs from extending the date for when the UK will leave the EU. Moreover, it would allow Johnson to push through a no-deal Brexit.
Johnson, currently in France for the G7 summit, has warned MPs to not try to further extend the formal date for Brexit:
I think it’s parliament’s job now to respect not just the will of the people but to remember what the overwhelming majority of them promised to do over and over and over again, which is to get Brexit done, to respect the will of the people, and to come out of the EU on 31 October. That is what I am confident our parliament will do.
Opposition
Johnson’s plans have met with considerable opposition. Conservative Remainer Dominic Grieve has described the move as showing “contempt for the House of Commons”, going on to say:
It may be possible to circumvent the clear intention of the House of Commons in this way but it shows total bad faith. Excluding the house from a national crisis that threatens the future of our country is entirely wrong.
Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, also criticised the move on Twitter, saying:
This must be stopped. To suspend parliament at this crucial time is outrageous. MPs must take the earliest opportunity to take Johnson on and defeat him.
A no-deal Brexit, favoured by Johnson, could have potentially devastating effects on trade, immigration, the economy, and political relations with the EU.
Featured image via YouTube/ Sky News
