DAY JUDGEMENT
Supreme Court rules that UK Prime Minister behaved unlawfully
In one of the most dramatic days in the history of UK politics, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was found to have behaved unlawfully (didn’t obey the law). On 24 September, judges at the Supreme Court – the UK’s most powerful court – said Johnson had misled the Queen (caused her to have the wrong idea) when he asked her to prorogue (suspend) Parliament for five weeks.
What has happened?
A panel of 11 Supreme Court judges, known as justices, had to decide whether or not Johnson had acted properly ahead of Parliament being prorogued. Some people, including a former Prime Minister, claimed that Johnson had misled the Queen. The case was taken to the Supreme Court after courts in Scotland and England reached
different conclusions.
What’s the problem?
The Prime Minister said he wanted to shut down Parliament so that his Government could draw up plans for a new Queen’s Speech (an announcement of the Government’s plans for new laws). However, the prorogation was to last nearly five weeks, which is much longer than normal. Some Members of Parliament (MPs) said that it was done deliberately to reduce the time available for them to discuss the Prime Minister’s plans for Brexit. Brexit is the term for the UK’s decision to leave the European Union (EU) – an organisation of 28 countries that trade together and follow the same rules. The Prime Minister wants Brexit to happen on 31 October.
What did the Supreme Court say?
The court’s official statement said, “This was not a normal prorogation in the run-up to a Queen’s Speech. It prevented Parliament from carrying out its constitutional role.” This means that the judges believed that Johnson wanted to stop Parliament from doing its duty. After the announcement, there were demands for Johnson to resign (give up his job). The Prime Minister said he “strongly disagrees” with the decision but he will respect it. MPs have now returned to Parliament.