Queen Elizabeth II agreed on Wednesday upon British government’s request to suspend the parliament from Sept. 9 until Oct. 14. The approval of the request was announced by a statement of Queen’s Privy Council.
Prime minister Boris Johnson’s move sparked a harsh reaction from the MPs and opponents of a no-deal Brexit. It also sparked protests across the country, a legal challenge and a petition with more than a million signatures.
Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Labour Party, called the move as an “outrage”.
“Boris Johnson’s attempt to suspend parliament to avoid scrutiny of his plans for a reckless No Deal Brexit is an outrage and a threat to our democracy,” he said on Twitter.
Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow described the move a “constitutional outrage”.
Clive Lewis, a Labour lawmaker, also reacted on Twitter and said they will call for street protests. “If Boris shuts down Parliament to carry out his No-Deal Brexit, I and other MPs will defend democracy. ” he stated.
On Wednesday evening protesters gathered in Westminster chanting “stop the coup” and carrying anti-Brexit placards and EU flags. The demonstration – organised hours beforehand – started outside Parliament before spreading towards Downing Street.
Meanwhile, an e-petition on the government’s website demanding Parliament not be suspended reached more than a million signatures in less than a day.
According to government, the five-week suspension in September and October will still allow time to debate Brexit. But critics said it was an “undemocratic” attempt to stop MPs from blocking no deal.
