UK Supreme Court to hear Brexit appeal in December
BRITAIN’S Supreme Court said on Tuesday it has set aside four days starting on December 5 to hear the government’s appeal against a landmark ruling that it must seek parliament’s approval to start the Brexit process.
All 11 Supreme Court judges will hear the case, which could delay Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union, and will deliver their judgement “probably in the New Year”, a court statement said.
Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative government is appealing against a High Court ruling last week that it does not have the executive power alone to trigger Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty, which begins exit negotiations. The judgement prompted outrage among those who fear that some members of parliament – most of whom wanted to stay in the EU – may seek to delay or block Brexit.
Such was the extent of the personal attacks on the judges – branded“Enemies of the People” by one newspaper – that the justice minister was forced to issue a statement defending the independence of the judiciary.
The government insists it will stick to its timetable for Brexit whatever the outcome of the court case.
Updating MPs on the process on Monday, Brexit Minister David Davis said: “This timetable remains consistent with our aim to trigger Article 50 by the end of March next year.”
“We won’t achieve a good negotiation outcome if this is a negotiation being run by 650 people in this House of Commons or nearly 900 in the Lords,” he said. “No negotiation in history has been run that way.
“Indeed, if parliament insists on setting out a detailed minimum negotiating position, that will quickly become the maximum possible offer from the negotiating partners.”
Davis was to meet yesterday with his counterparts from Scotland,Wales and Northern Ireland, the first in a series of monthly meetings aimed at exchanging information and preparing for Brexit negotiations. “We are determined to get a deal that works for all the parts of the United Kingdom,” Davis said.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon earlier announced that her semi-autonomous government would seek to join the court case, in a bid to secure a vote not just for the House of Commons but for the Scottish parliament.
“Let me be clear – I recognise and respect the right of England andWales to leave the European Union. This is not an attempt to veto that process,” Sturgeon said. “But the democratic wishes of the people of Scotland and the national parliament of Scotland cannot be brushed aside as if they do not matter.”