LONDON - UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on
Thursday denied lying to Queen Elizabeth over the reasons for
suspending the British parliament after a court ruled his
decision was unlawful and opponents called for lawmakers to be
recalled to discuss Brexit.
Since Johnson won the top job in July, Britain's Brexit
crisis has spun more furiously, leaving investors and allies
bewildered by an array of decisions that have pushed the once
stable political system to its limits.
Parliament was prorogued - suspended - on Monday until Oct.
14, a move Johnson's opponents said was designed to thwart their
attempts to scrutinise his plans for leaving the European Union
and to allow him to push through Brexit on Oct. 31, with or
without an exit deal to smooth the way.
Scotland's highest court of appeal ruled on Wednesday that
the suspension was not lawful and was intended to stymie
lawmakers, prompting opponents to question whether Johnson had
lied to Queen Elizabeth, who must formally order the prorogation.
"Absolutely not," Johnson said when asked by a TV reporter
if he had misled the queen, who is the world's longest reigning
monarch and is widely respected for more than 67 years of
dedicated service during which she has stayed above the fray of
politics.
Johnson said the current session of parliament was longer
than any since the English Civil war in the 17th century, adding
that lawmakers would have plenty of time to again discuss Brexit
after an EU summit on Oct. 17-18.
He says parliament was suspended to allow the government to
present its legislative programme.
With less than 50 days until the United Kingdom is due to
leave, the government and parliament are locked in conflict over
the future of Brexit, with possible outcomes ranging from
leaving without a deal to another referendum.
A "no-deal" Brexit could snarl cross-Channel trade routes,
disrupting supplies of medicines and fresh food while protests
spread across Britain, according to a worst-case scenario
reluctantly released by the government on Wednesday.
The "Operation Yellowhammer" assumptions, prepared six weeks
ago just days after Johnson became prime minister, form the
basis of government no-deal planning.
Britain is unlikely to run out of essentials like toilet
paper in the event of a no-deal Brexit but some fresh fruit and
vegetables could be in short supply and prices might rise,
supermarket bosses warned on Thursday.
'Significant gaps'
Before parliament was suspended, opposition lawmakers and
rebels from Johnson's Conservative Party passed legislation that
would make Johnson ask for a three-month extension to Britain’s
EU membership if parliament has not either approved a deal by
Oct. 19 or consented to leaving without one by then.
Johnson has said he would rather be “dead in a ditch” than
delay Britain’s exit. The campaigners behind the successful
Scottish court case said they had begun new legal proceedings
that would compel him to do so.
Johnson says his aim is to get a deal and has repeatedly
said he will seek to get an agreement at the EU summit to remove
the Irish border backstop, an insurance agreement to prevent the
return of border controls between Northern Ireland and the Irish
Republic after Brexit.
Opponents of the backstop in the British parliament worry it
would lock the United Kingdom into the EU's orbit for years to
come. The European Union would respond positively if the British
government shifts its position in Brexit talks in the coming
weeks, Ireland's Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said.
But Coveney said that there were "significant gaps" between
British proposals and what Ireland and the EU would consider. He
said the threat of a no-deal Brexit might help make the British
debate "more honest".
Belfast's High Court dismissed on Thursday a case arguing
that a British exit from the European Union without a withdrawal
agreement would contravene Northern Ireland's 1998 peace accord.
Johnson said the government is waiting to hear an appeal
next week against the Scottish court's ruling on the suspension
of parliament in the Supreme Court, the United Kingdom’s highest
judicial body.
Last week, the High Court of England and Wales rejected a
similar challenge, saying it was a political not a judicial
matter, and an appeal in that case also begins on Tuesday.
"Indeed, as I say, the High Court in England plainly agrees
with us, but the Supreme Court will have to decide," Johnson
said. Buckingham Palace has declined to comment on the ruling,
saying it is a matter for the government.