Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 18 september 2019
High drama at UK Supreme Court in Brexit challenge case

By JILL LAWLESS land's High Court said the
Associated Press move was a political rather
LONDON (AP) — The British than legal matter, but Scot-
government and its oppo- tish court judges ruled last
nents faced off Tuesday at week that Johnson acted
the U.K. Supreme Court in illegally "to avoid demo-
a high-stakes legal drama cratic scrutiny."
over Brexit that will deter- The Supreme Court is being
mine whether new Prime asked to decide who was
Minister Boris Johnson broke right, in a case scheduled
the law by suspending Par- to last up to three days. It
liament at a crucial time is considering two ques-
ahead of Britain's impend- tions: Is this a matter for
ing departure from the Eu- the courts; and, if so, did
ropean Union. the government break the
As pro-EU and pro-Brexit law?
protesters exchanged The government denies
shouts outside the court misconduct. Its lawyers ar-
building on London's Parlia- gued in a written submis-
ment Square, the govern- sion that the issue is "intrin-
ment's opponents argued sically one of high policy
that Johnson illegally shut and politics, not law."
down Parliament just weeks Protesters hold banners outside the Supreme Court in London, Tuesday Sept. 17, 2019. Keen, acting for the gov-
before the country is due Associated Press ernment, told the court
to leave the 28-nation bloc that the Scottish judges
for the "improper purpose" Government lawyer Rich- uled Oct. 31 Brexit day. A necessary steps to comply "have simply gone where
of dodging lawmakers' ard Keen said judges in a ruling against the govern- with any declaration made the court should not go."
scrutiny of his Brexit plans. lower court had "nakedly ment by the country's top by the court." But he had Keen insisted there was
They also accused John- entered the political arena" court could force him to no answer when judges nothing improper in the
son of misleading Queen by ruling on the matter. recall Parliament. asked if Johnson might government's behavior.
Elizabeth II, whose formal "The court is not equipped Johnson hasn't said what recall Parliament on the He said there were previ-
approval was needed to to decide what is a legiti- he will do if the judges rule court's order, only to sus- ous cases of British govern-
suspend the legislature. mate political consider- the suspension illegal. He pend it again. ments suspending Parlia-
The government countered ation," he said. told the BBC on Monday he "I'm not in a position to ment "for political reasons"
that, under Britain's largely Johnson sent lawmakers would "wait and see what comment on that," he said. and for "extensive periods
unwritten constitution, the home on Sept. 9 until Oct. they say." The prime minister says Brit- of time."
suspension was a matter for 14, which is barely two Keen promised that "the ain must leave the EU at the But Pannick, attorney for
politicians, not the courts. weeks before the sched- prime minister will take any end of next month with or transparency advocate
without a divorce deal. But Gina Miller, told the court it
many U.K. lawmakers be- was a fundamental consti-
lieve a no-deal Brexit would tutional principle that "Par-
be economically devastat- liament is sovereign and
ing and socially destabiliz- the executive is account-
ing, and are determined to able to Parliament."
thwart him. He said the five-week sus-
Lawyer David Pannick, pension of Parliament was
who represents one of the the longest for decades,
campaigners challeng- and called it "remarkable"
ing the government, told that the prime minister had
11 Supreme Court judges not submitted a witness
that Johnson had improp- statement to the court out-
erly suspended the legisla- lining his reasons. He said,
ture "to silence Parliament in the absence of a sworn
... because he sees Parlia- statement, "we say the
ment as an obstacle to the court should infer that there
furtherance of his political is no answer" to the allega-
aims." tion that Johnson acted im-
Johnson says the suspen- properly.
sion is routine, and will allow Pannick, however, stressed
his government to launch that he wasn't criticizing
its domestic agenda with a Britain's 93-year-old mon-
new session of Parliament. arch in the case. "Her maj-
But the decision outraged esty acted on the advice
many lawmakers, who say of her prime minister," he
it's designed to prevent said.
them from challenging The case is the latest twist
Johnson's push for Brexit in in a Brexit saga that has
October "do or die." divided British politicians
The suspension sparked le- and the public for more
gal challenges, to which than three years, since the
lower courts have given country narrowly voted in
contradictory rulings. Eng- 2016 to leave the EU.q