Martin Kettle writes:

The supreme court has delivered a comprehensive demolition of Boris Johnson’s government and its handling of Brexit. The unanimous judgment of the 11 justices, announced by Lady Hale this morning, amounts to a root and branch rejection of the prime minister’s attempts to rule without parliament, to take Britain out of the European Union by 31 October without a deal, and to contrive a premature general election. The judgment was incisive and without any waffle. It was very consciously written in the best tradition of British constitutional law, of which parliamentary sovereignty is the foundational rock.

The immediate effect of the judgment is devastating for Johnson. It is expressed so cogently and unambiguously that it will be difficult for him to wriggle out of it – even though he is certainly foolish enough to try. Parliament will surely be recalled on Tuesday – since, as the judgment said, it has not been prorogued in the first place. Johnson’s efforts, to the extent that they exist at all, to negotiate a new or tweaked deal with the EU will be held up to the light. And, since Johnson spectacularly lacks a majority in the House of Commons, it is likely that the cross-party efforts to shape Brexit will be redoubled.

Johnson’s own position as prime minister, along with those of his legal advisers (including the attorney general) and that of his 10 Downing Street advisers (especially his key strategist Dominic Cummings) must also be in question. It is possible that Johnson will throw Cummings to the wolves, to make him the fall guy for the catastrophically inept and illegal strategy that he has been following.

Pressure on Johnson to quit will surely be central to the way this all plays out in the coming days. His opponents, therefore, absolutely need to agree on the form, composition and, above all, the leader of any government that could replace him. [Continue reading…]