Well, it’s confirmed. Her Majesty has agreed to Prorogue Parliament. Essentially shutting it down soon after returning from Summer Recess and letting them reconvene with 2 weeks to natter, complain, and bleat before the BREXIT date of October 31.
(h/t Larry L.)
Of course, the Usual Suspects are all saying this is the end of Civilization As We Know It! and Utter Disaster!! and worse.
Watching chickens scream, so much fun ;-)
At last our collective almost 3 year nightmare may reach a clean conclusion.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-49493632
Parliament suspension: Queen approves PM’s plan
51 minutes agoParliament will be suspended just days after MPs return to work in September – and only a few weeks before the Brexit deadline.
Boris Johnson said a Queen’s Speech would take place after the suspension, on 14 October, to outline his “very exciting agenda”.
But it means the time MPs have to pass laws to stop a no-deal Brexit on 31 October would be cut.
House of Commons Speaker John Bercow said it was a “constitutional outrage”.
The Speaker, who does not traditionally comment on political announcements, continued: “However it is dressed up, it is blindingly obvious that the purpose of [suspending Parliament] now would be to stop [MPs] debating Brexit and performing its duty in shaping a course for the country.”
Musings from the Chiefio 
On France24, one party has stated that since the suspension covers some already scheduled breaks, the actual added days are three. Yes, all the hollering and screaming is about 3 days of actual added suspension.
Now they are mentioning Charles the first who prorogued parliament and trying to beat the suspension up into the outbreak of Civil War.
Last night: A small delegation of privy counsellors, led by Jacob Rees-Mogg, asked the Queen to agree to the prorogation plan.
September 3: MPs return to Westminster from their summer recess.
Week commencing September 9: After debates on the Northern Ireland executive, parliament will be prorogued. (can by precedent be 5-6 weeks long).
Parliament is normally recessed from this time every year.
September 14-17: Liberal Democrat conference
September 21-25: Labour Party conference
September 29 — October 2: Conservative Party conference
Parliament normally reopens a few days after the last Party conference ends.
October 14: Queen’s Speech to reopen new sitting. (Speech written by the government and outlining proposed legislation as in the last 300 years or so).
October 17-18: European Council summit of EU leaders
October 21-22: Votes on Queen’s Speech
October 31: Article 50 expires and the UK leaves the European Union.
That gives them 3 days before the European Council summit.
Speaker Bercow (noted Remainer) is talking through his wig.
Very odd. The title & role of “the Speaker” traditionally ( pre 1700 ) was to manage the Commons & speak to the monarch on behalf of the parliament.. about what legislation etc. had passed the Commons. The latter role withered with the emergence of the prime ministerial system of government ..But it seems that Bercoe has decided to try & take a politically active role as a Remoaner..
In the UK traditionally when an MP was elected as Speaker, none of the major party nominated against him or her, in subsequent elections.. And the same person was Speaker until he retired.
But I doubt that in a future election that Bercoe will be unopposed. He will be booted from Parliament. And he deserves exactly that.
The Speaker, who does not traditionally comment on political announcements, continued: “However it is dressed up, it is blindingly obvious that the purpose of [suspending Parliament] now would be to stop [MPs] debating Brexit and performing its duty in shaping a course for the country.”
yeah – because two plus years wasn’t enough time – they need those extra few days!
Farage on making the clean break with the EU.
Who wants to stay? Yr non-democratic George Sorossuss,
that’s who. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nh1Y3TbCHQw
The internet never forgets.
“Hugh Grant takes on Boris Johnson in the morality stakes”
https://www.michaelsmithnews.com/2019/08/hugh-grant-takes-on-boris-johnson-in-the-morality-stakes.html
Last couple of photos
I did not think that Boris had the guts to do this. The “Remainers” want to debate the BREXIT issue even though it was decided by referendum two years ago.
Corbyn will try to force a “No Confidence” vote that could trigger a general election.
My guess is that it won’t succeed but if it did Boris would end up in a stronger position than he has today.
Teresa May was weakened by a general election because she was not committed to BREXIT. As long as Boris is “Pedal to the Metal” on BREXIT he will gain in strength.
@beththe serf,
Thanks for that link to a Farage interview. Boris would do well to follow his advice by executing a “Hard BREXIT” before the end of October. No $39 billion to the EU and a trade deal with the USA by Christmas.
The EU is doomed and the defection of the UK will accelerate the collapse.
Yes gallopingcamel,…
EU
your contradictions
damn you,
socalist swine!
(H/t Karl Marx.)
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@beththeserf,
Thanks for amazing insights!
Proroguing parliament for a month or so is nothing new, and is part of the parliamentary tradition. It’s part of the normal functioning of government. It’s just a part of the machinery of governance. Criticizing prorogation as an institution is something like yelling at a shovel. It’s the person using the shovel that must be judged, not the shovel itself.
Where it becomes unethical is when it’s used to thwart the will of the people. In Canada, there have been instances where the government was about to lose its majority in the legislature and so prorogued rather than face a non-confidence vote. In one case, the government then refused to call legislators back for an entire year (the constitutional limit) before calling an election, in which they were thrown unceremoniously from power. The political party in question didn’t survive another decade, to the great credit of voters.
In BoJo’s case, a month is hardly a long time, and it’s hard to argue he’s thwarting the will of the people, since they’ve already voted for Brexit.
It does bother me, though, that the prorogation happens at such a critical time in British history. History (and voters) will have to judge whether this was justifiable or not. It’s also a risk, since this apparently gives remainers a week to cobble together a coalition to overthrow him, or force a new election.
“It’s also a risk, since this apparently gives remainers a week to cobble together a coalition to overthrow him, or force a new election.”
But then maybe not
“Brexit Bounce”
“It’s almost as though they’re looking for a leader: BORIS Johnson’s gamble to shutdown Parliament has paid off as the Tory’s lead over Labour has almost doubled in just three weeks, latest polls have revealed.”
http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/index.php/2019/09/01/brexit-5/
Yes for all the noise and wailing by the minority Remoaners in London, it looks like the British people are behind Boris in supporting and independent UK. Brexit is happening !
Will there be an election afterwards ? Probably ! Why do I think this ?
Because a whole bunch of Conservative MP’s who don’t suppport the governmnet policy on Brexit are protesting that they are being singled out for “Deselection ” at the next UK general elections. In other words they are being told “Toe the party & government line or you political life is finished”.
Chris in Calgary says: 31 August 2019 at 9:15 pm
“Proroguing parliament for a month or so is nothing new” and
“It does bother me, though, that the prorogation happens at such a critical time in British history.”
I think that you will find that the actual prorogue period is 4 days, unlike John Major who closed parliament for a much longer period in 1997 over the Cash for questions scandal.
Where was the outrage over that?
By the way the UK prorogues the parliament most years for the Queens speech and yet we apparently haven’t had one for 3 years.
I’m still very wary indeed of Boris Johnson. OK, he has said that he is “prepared” to take us out “with no deal if necessary”, but then he did, not so very long ago, vote for Theresa May’s Withdrawal Capitulation, sorry, Agreement, which should make us pause for thought. I have an uneasy feeling that, with all the current blather about the Irish “backstop”, he would be quite happy, say, to come to some under-the-counter deal with the Eurocrats which postponed the backstop for awhile but left the rest of the “Agreement” largely as is, and then declare a glittering victory. As widely discussed since the WA’s spawning, that wouldn’t be an exit so much as an application for demotion from powerless family member to well-kicked serf, and with Johnson running the show it still cannot be ruled ouit.
He has also – since becoming PM – openly stated that he would like simply to allow all the illegal immigrants who have managed to get in just to remain here and become “legitimate”, which shows that he apparently remains blissfully ignorant of one of the core principles driving us to want Brexit. The bureaucracy seems to be fully behind him in this: the “official” population of the UK continues to be given as around 65 million whilst, about five years ago, a senior official in the social security hierarchy let it slip, at a beanfeast he was addressing, how proud he was that his department was serving over eighty million “customers”. Now that is a far more believable figure.
It hardly needs mentioning that the British people have never been consulted, at any stage, on any aspect of the demolition of our homeland. Rather, we have just been subjected to hectoring gevernment, of whatever stripe, battering us with an onslaught of laws forcing us to tolerate one after another affront to our own culture and values in this country, where our “free speech” has now been redefined as “hate speech”.
And now we have a dangerous, cunning clown in charge who is more concerned with being remembered for “doing something great” than with anything the little people think. Pro-rogue? That’s the Parliamentary default position, me duck, that is situation abso-bloody-lutely normale, and the bigger the rogue the more pro.
“Ultimatum: Tory Remain MPs to Be Kicked Out of Party If They Back Brexit Delay”
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2019/09/02/ultimatum-tory-remain-mps-be-kicked-out-party-back-brexit-delay/