The announcement by the Supreme Court that Prime Minister Johnson’s suspension of Parliament was unlawful in that he advised the Queen untruthly has sent shockwaves across the country.
The announcement by the Supreme Court that Prime Minister Johnson’s suspension of Parliament was unlawful in that he advised the Queen untruthly has sent shockwaves across the country.
The landmark case which successfully reached the Supreme Court via the Scottish Court of Session has hampered plans by Johnson and Cummings which opposition characterised as a power grab aimed at stopping parliamentary business.
However, the case brought by SNP MP Joan Cherry and other Scottish politicians, has produced more questions than answers.
Before the suspension, opposition MPs succeeded in blocking a no-deal Brexit and in preventing a General Election which would have made ‘crashing out’ inevitable.
Currently, a no-deal Brexit is still likely unless an extension is agreed upon with the EU.
As parliament reopens, it may be in the same position as it was before and be stuck in a sort of paralysis. A general election will most likely not be called before the 31st and any motion of no-confidence against the government is also unlikely as this too would lead to another election as the Lib Dems ruled out supporting a Labour-led government.
The Prime Minister accepted the verdict but has yet to make any commitment to resigning and will likely stay put - especially as his supporters have strengthened their position within the Conservative party.
One of the main options left for the leavers in government and parliament is to cobble together another compromised deal which could offer an alternative to the Irish-backstop.
This too seems unlikely as Boris had previously promised this but instead halfed Britain’s negotiating team and was accused by the EU of not offering anything new.
The EU is in a strong position and will not compromise any further with Britain in any meaningful way and will certainly not drop any commitment to avoiding a hard border between Ireland and the North.
The only thing we can be certain about in the lead up to the 31st is that nothing is certain and this could be harmful to businesses and EU-nationals.