The prime minister’s request to the Queen “to prorogue” Parliament can and must be stopped. But kicking him out of office is not the only way – and maybe not the best.
Boris Johnson wants to suspend Parliament in the week of September 9 – and only bring it back on October 14. The idea is to make it hard for MPs to stop Johnson from dragging us out of the EU – “do or die” – without a deal on October 31.
This is an outrageous anti-democratic manoeuvre. Here are six ways the prime minister’s plot might be foiled, some of which could be pursued simultaneously.
Cabinet resignations
Amber Rudd, who once slammed the idea of proroguing Parliament as a device of “Stuart kings” in reference to Charles I’s battles with Oliver Cromwell, should resign from the Cabinet. So should any other minister who cares for the principle that the prime minister serves Parliament. Resignations on their own won’t stop Johnson in his tracks – but it might just get him to think again.
Legal challenge
Although the Queen normally takes the prime minister’s advice on when to suspend Parliament, this is not a normal situation. Johnson is clearly flouting the will of Parliament. The courts cannot stop the Queen proroguing Parliament but they might rule that the prime minister is wrong to advise her to do so and that could have the same effect. SNP MP Joanna Cherry has already launched a lawsuit to stop Parliament being prorogued. Today she said she would seek to fast-track it.
Humble address to the Queen
MPs could pass a motion in the form of a “humble address” to the Queen asking her not to suspend Parliament. This might give her a good reason to reject her prime minister’s advice.
Law banning prorogation
MPs could try to rush through an emergency law saying Parliament shouldn’t be suspended. If so, it’s hard to see how the Queen could agree to Johnson’s request.
Emergency law to delay Brexit
Yesterday Jeremy Corbyn agreed with opposition leaders to try to pass a law forcing the prime minister to ask the EU to delay Brexit beyond October 31. They may still have just enough time to rush the law through before Parliament is suspended. If so, the fact that MPs won’t be back at work until October 14 won’t matter so much.
Kick Johnson out of Downing St
This is the “nuclear weapon”. Until today it seemed unlikely that enough Conservative MPs would join Corbyn in a vote of no confidence against Johnson for it to succeed. Following the latest outrage, the Labour leader may now have the numbers to bring him down.
The snag is that Johnson could then hang on as prime minister until after an election – and he could delay the election until after October 31. The only solution to this problem is for MPs to rally around Corbyn or another leader, who could then take over as a temporary prime minister. The caretaker could then ask the EU for extra time and advise the Queen to recall Parliament. If Johnson still refused to leave Downing St, the Queen would have to use her reserve powers to sack him.