By Tony O'Riley-
Parliament must be recalled after if a Scotland Court ruling that its five-week closure was unlawful and is null and of no effect.
Downing Street said but Parliament would remain prorogued until its appeal to the Supreme Court, which will be heard on Tuesday. This statement overlooks the wording of the court ruling in Scotland that clearly states that the advice given to the Queen was null and of no effect.
The Court of Session judges conclusion that Boris Johnson’s decision to prorogue parliament was motivated by the “improper purpose of stymieing Parliament” means calls from opposition Mps for Parliament to be recalled should be honoured. The ruling clearly stated: “The Court will accordingly make an Order declaring that the prime minister’s advice to HM the Queen and the prorogation which followed thereon was unlawful and is thus null and of no effect.”
Continued suspension of parliament would mean the advise to the Queen still has ‘strong effect’ and make nonsense of the ruling in the Court of Sessions. The legal battle that has distastefully accompanied Brexit and its surrounding controversies how the Uk exits the EU has led to a series of potentially judicial contradictions that needs to be settled quickly.
The fresh ruling starkly contradicts an earlier ruling by England’s High Court last week, in a case brought by anti-Brexit campaigner Gina Miller, which determined the government’s actions were lawful. On Wednesday, England’s High Court ruled that the power to suspend, or prorogue, Parliament rested with the government and was outside the purview of the courts, adding “the refusal of the courts to review political questions is well-established”.
The Supreme Court’s nine justices will now consider the government’s appeal of the Scottish ruling at the same time as Mrs Miller’s appeal. No 10 said it would abide by their decision.
But former Tory MP Dominic Grieve – who had the Conservative whip removed after voting to block a no-deal Brexit – called for Parliament’s immediate recall and said if it was the case the government had misled the Queen, Mr Johnson should resign.
The judges made it “quite clear” the explanation for suspending Parliament was “simply inaccurate and untrue”, he added.Keir Starmer called the ruling “incredibly powerful”