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LAST UPDATE | 6 Sep 2019
THE HIGH COURT in London has ruled that Boris Johnson’s plan to prorogue parliament is not illegal.
The case was brought by Gina Miller, who won a case in 2017 which saw judges determine that parliament had to have a vote on triggering Article 50 – the mechanism to allow a country to leave the EU.
The case, one of three taken against the UK prime minister’s decision, will be appealed to the Supreme Court.
It is expected that the case will be heard on 17 September.
Miler’s barrister, Lord Pannick QC, argued yesterday that prorogration breached parliamentary sovereignty.
The announcement that parliament would be prorogued from 9 September until 14 October triggered a storm of political anger, sparking protests, legal challenges and claims that Johnson was undermining British democracy.
Johnson and his government have denied the accusation that the decision is an attempt to stifle debate on Brexit.
Today’s decision will come as good news to Boris Johnson, who has suffered a week of defeats and embarrassments after losing his first four votes in the House of Commons and his brother Jo Johnson resigning from government.
“We will not give up our fight for democracy,” Miller said today following the decision. “As our politics becomes ever more chaotic, we feel it is absolutely vital that our parliament should be sitting.”
“To give up now would be a dereliction of our responsibility,” she said.
Scotland
A decision is also expected from Scotland next week, where Scottish National Party MP Joanna Cherry brought a case challenging prorogation to the Court of Session.
Earlier this week, the Outer House of Scotland’s highest civil court rejected the petition, which is backed by 75 UK parliamentarians and campaigner Jolyon Maugham of the Good Law Project.
Lord Doherty rejected the claim that prorogation was illegal and said that the decision was not a matter for the courts to rule on.
Yesterday’s hearing in the Inner House saw lawyer Aidan O’Neill QC repeat the charges that prorogration undermined the British parliament and posed a threat to the rule of law.
The hearing yesterday had an impact beyond the courtroom in Edinburgh. Partially redacted government documents released as part of the case appear to show that Johnson had agreed to prorogation as early as 15 August.
Proceedings in the Court of Session will began again this morning.
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Have just been looking at the 387 comments on the Journal from the 29th of February 2020 relating to the story about the first case of Covid found in Ireland. It’s fascinating stuff. Many of them are flippant and jocular and you can tell that nobody expected we’d still be dealing with it two years later. What’s more fascinating though is that I don’t recognise any of the names of the commenters from back then. Commenting on Journal stories appears to have a shelf-life, which is understandable. I wonder how long it will take most of us commenting on stories semi-regularly to get bored and move on. There’s only so many ways we can spout the same old BS before it gets old and tired and pointless but that’s never stopped anyone I suppose. Take this comment for example…
@William Tallon: Personally I’m going nowhere. I’ll be around when others cannot be found. I am forever baby. I am Vonvonic!!
@William Tallon: You trawled through 387 comments? I don’t think that was good for you William, I think I’d have needed therapy.
@Bert Carolan: You might yet need therapy for even imagining the way you’d have felt.
@Vonvonic: You could be right, I’m just thinking of some of the madder stuff that was on here. In a funny way it helped me get through those days.
@Bert Carolan: Looking at and trawling have different meanings as you well know but hey, using words incorrectly or out of context in the Journal comments section never gets old or tired or pointless…
@Vonvonic: Yes, I’ve no doubt you are forever or at least it feels that way so far…
@William Tallon: Now now. There’s no need for that. I’m sure if you met me in real life you’d realise that I’m not the big super hero you imagine I am. I’m just a normal guy who gets up in the morning and mows the grass
@Vonvonic: Yes.
@William Tallon: interesting. I’d like to have a look back at that. I have been commenting on the journal for about 10 years, but my initial two accounts were twitter accounts both of which were banned by the journal for fairly flimsy reasons. I mean seriously silly reasons. One was when I made a very light hearted joke about a couple of typos in an article headline. So there are probably a fair few of those commentors still commenting but under a different account like myself.
@Gerry McCaughey: After a while, you start to recognise the same names commenting over and over on the various stories here and I genuinely haven’t seen the majority of those names from two years ago doing so today.
@William Tallon: I’ll drop in occasionally, and out of respect I’ll respond William. I have to add, the comments section has been a tonic for the last 2 years.
@William Tallon: If going through 387 comments isn’t a trawl I don’t know what is .Or is it a slog. Or was it just the names of the commentators you looked at?
And of course my comment was intended to be humorous. I have found the Journal comments to be the preserve of a lot of types that I used to meet in the chipper after closing time.
@Bert Carolan: love the chipper analogy!
@William Tallon: Not sure what ur getting at, but as others have said thejournal regularly bans users, so many will change their login.
If you are referring to Covid articles then of course less people commentating as also less people reading articles. Covid Articles used to be the most read with upto 90k and more sometimes. Now they usually less than 20k.
@Da Dell: And I’m not sure what you’re getting at. Guess that balances things out so.
@Bert Carolan: I have no recollection of ever meeting you in the chipper after closing time as I ordered my Southern Fried Chicken dinner box and a portion of garlic sauce for dipping my chips in. In my defence though I was always rather drunk…
@DJBERMO: I find the Journal’s comments section horribly fascinating in that gawping at a car-crash sort of way. I’ve certainly never found it to be a tonic…
Hospital numbers are low which is very positive
Live Life and think of other who can’t because of the last two years rip to them
Pints and clubbing! Still catching up on the last 2 years
@Tom Bombdadil: Sad
@In the paper: hahahahaha! Most definitely not, you still under the bed.
@In the paper: Ah here. Move on a small bit.
I graft in a test centre and very few are getting tested so these numbers can’t be accurate in terms of the amount of infections. Numbers are a lot higher.
1st comment
@Kevin: do you want a cookie?!
We were doing great and hopefully this is just a small blip and we can get the numbers down faster.
Just keep following the few rules left and we will all be free.
Its our first pandemic and you never forget your first time!!!!!!
@Gary Kearney: whats a small blip? Hospital cases low icu down
Case numbers stable
@Gary Kearney: great…comparing your 1st time to Covid, you 1stvtime must have really sucked & not in a good way.
It’s time for YAWN GIFS on.the journal
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