Johnson plans to suspend Parliament before Brexit

The request would limit time for British lawmakers to thwart a no-deal exit

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to lock the doors to the Parliament soon after MPs return from their summer vacation on Sept 4 in an apparent attempt to stop opponents blocking his plan to take the United Kingdom out of the European Union on Oct 31, regardless of consequences.

Johnson on Wednesday disclosed that he has asked Queen Elizabeth to shut down Parliament, likely between Sept 9 and Oct 14. That means lawmakers would have insufficient time to pass legislation that would prevent the UK from leaving the EU, according to the BBC's political editor, Laura Kuenssberg. Johnson favors a final exit by Nov 1 even if no details are worked out with the European bloc.

Downing Street said Johnson plans to reveal a "very exciting agenda" for the next session of Parliament, which Johnson wants to open on Oct 14.

The closure of Parliament, a process known as proroguing, is viewed by many as deeply undemocratic and controversial. Kuenssberg said many senior government ministers were unaware of the plan before it was announced on Wednesday morning.

Johnson has repeatedly said he wants the UK to leave the EU on Oct 31, but many opposition MPs and even some fellow Conservative lawmakers say the nation should not leave without a deal that ensures friction-free, tariff-free future trading.

Opponents of a so-called no-deal Brexit met on Tuesday and agreed to use parliamentary procedures to block such an exit, a move Johnson now appears to have countered by proroguing Parliament.

Conservative Party MP Dominic Grieve, a former attorney general and a prominent critic of a no-deal Brexit said on Wednesday that the prorogation was "an outrageous act" that would lead to a vote of no confidence in Johnson's government.

He said: "If the prime minister persists with this and doesn't back off, then I think the chances are that his administration will collapse. There is plenty of time to do that if necessary. I will certainly vote to bring down a Conservative government that persists in a course of action which is so unconstitutional."

Tom Watson, deputy leader of the opposition Labour Party, tweeted that the move was an "utterly scandalous affront to our democracy", and Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, called on MPs opposed to a no-deal Brexit to meet again to counter Johnson's move or "today will go down in history as a dark one indeed for UK democracy".

The Guardian newspaper said leaked emails revealed over the weekend that the prime minister had sought legal advice on a fiveweek prorogation. It said MPs returning in mid-October would have a narrow window of opportunity to vote on any deal Johnson may have worked out with the EU in the interim, ahead of a European Council meeting on Oct 17.

In a letter to MPs, Johnson said his decision to prorogue Parliament was not about forcing through a no-deal Brexit. Instead, he said, it was done to allow him to bring forward a "bold and ambitious domestic legislative agenda".

The Standard newspaper said more than 200 MPs immediately signed a declaration in Westminster's Church House promising to continue debating issues in an alternative venue if Parliament is suspended.

The House of Commons speaker, John Bercow, said he had not been consulted on the move and called it a "constitutional outrage".

The Express newspaper quoted Bercow as saying: "However it is dressed up, it is blindingly obvious that the purpose of prorogation now would be to stop Parliament debating Brexit and performing its duty in shaping a course for the country."

The Financial Times, meanwhile, reported on Wednesday that Nigel Farage, leader of the Brexit party, is willing to forge a nonaggression pact with Johnson's Conservative Party at the next general election, if both parties campaign to pursue a no-deal Brexit.

An unscheduled general election could be held in the fall, either because Johnson's government is toppled by its opponents or because he calls one in the hope of improving his slim parliamentary majority.