Supreme court poised to rule against Boris Johnson’s decision to prorogue parliament

The Observer reports that Boris Johnson would have no option but to recall MPs to Westminster if the supreme court rules he misled the Queen, according to senior legal sources.

There is a growing belief in the legal community that the court will find against the government when it hands down its momentous verdict on Johnson’s decision to prorogue parliament.

The prospect of the court finding against the prime minister has left the UK heading towards a “constitutional eruption of volcanic proportions”, according to another senior legal figure who asked not to be named. He said he also believed the case would go against the government.

Before the case, few thought the court would determine that Johnson’s advice to the Queen to suspend parliament for five weeks would be found unlawful. But over the course of the three-day hearing opinion has dramatically shifted.

A panel of 11 justices heard appeals arising out of two separate legal challenges in England and Scotland, in which leading judges reached different conclusions.

The court’s president, Lady Hale, has said the judges hope to give their decision early this week.

Via The Guardian