The United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Boris Johnson was humiliated in the Supreme Court on Tuesday as judges ruled unanimously he illegally prorogued Parliament in an 'extreme' move to 'frustrate' debate on Brexit with John Bercow grabbing power and pledging to recall MPs with the PM still away in New York.
In an eviscerating judgment President Lady Hale said the Prime Minister's decision to ask the Queen to shut down the Commons for five weeks was 'unlawful, void and of no effect'.
She said: 'The court is bound to conclude therefore that the decision to advise Her Majesty to prorogue was unlawful because it had the effect of frustrating or preventing the ability of Parliament to carry out its constitutional functions', adding: 'Parliament has not been prorogued'.
And in an unprecedented attack on the PM's motives, Lady Hale added: ‘The effect upon the fundamentals of our democracy was extreme. No justification for taking action with such an extreme effect has been put before the court' - but she refused to say if he lied.
Arch-remainer Gina Miller, who helped defeat Mr Johnson, hugged her lawyer Lord Pannick QC in the courtroom as her victory over the Brexiteer Prime Minister was confirmed. Outside in Parliament Square her supporters cheered and chanted: 'Johnson out'.
Jeremy Corbyn has already demanded the Prime Minister's resignation as Mr Johnson woke up 3,500 miles away from London in New York where he will meet with President Donald Trump at the United Nations later.
Johnson has already vowed not to resign from No 10 if he lost the case and is found to have misled Her Majesty - and will now be considering whether he can legally defy the court and ask the Queen to prorogue Parliament again.
Today's extraordinary Supreme Court judgment will have seismic consequences over whether the political power of the Prime Minister built up over centuries can be neutered by the courts.
What happens now that the Supreme Court has ruled that prorogation was unlawful?
The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament was unlawful.
The ruling will have major ramifications for Brexit, the government and the country.
Here's what is likely to happen next:
Lady Hale, the President of the Supreme Court, said that suspending Parliament was 'unlawful, void and of no effect'.
Effectively she said that as a result the order to prorogue Parliament had never actually been made.
'Parliament has not been prorogued,' she said.
Lady Hale said while the court was not entirely certain about what should happen next, it believed it should be up to the Commons Speaker John Bercow and the Lord Speaker to decide how to proceed.
That means when Parliament sits again rests entirely in the hands of Parliament rather than the government.
Bercow responded to the ruling immediately and said that Parliament 'must convene without delay'.
He said he will now consult the leaders of the respective political parties before announcing a final decision on when Parliament will sit again.
However, the expectation will be that MPs and peers will return to Westminster as soon as possible, potentially as soon as tomorrow.
Bercow said: 'I welcome the Supreme Court’s judgement that the prorogation of Parliament was unlawful.
'The judges have rejected the Government’s claim that closing down Parliament for five weeks was merely standard practice to allow for a new Queen’s Speech.
'In reaching their conclusion, they have vindicated the right and duty of Parliament to meet at this crucial time to scrutinise the executive and hold Ministers to account.
'As the embodiment of our Parliamentary democracy, the House of Commons must convene without delay. To this end, I will now consult the party leaders as a matter of urgency.'
Johnson suspended Parliament with the argument that he needed time to prepare a Queen's Speech which had been due to take place on October 14.
Today's ruling effectively destroys that timetable and puts the government back to square one.
Ministers will now have to decide how to proceed, with rumours that Johnson could try to prorogue Parliament again.
Such a move would be incredibly controversial.
Johnson had ruled out resigning in the event of the court ruling prorogation was unlawful.
But he will now face intense pressure to consider his position.
The UK remains on course to leave the EU on October 31 but today's decision means the run up to Halloween will be volatile and fraught with difficulty.
It also delivers a sledgehammer blow to his promise to take Britain out of the EU on October 31 'deal or No Deal' with remainer MPs ready to take control of the process.
Jeremy Corbyn demanded an immediate recall of Parliament and an election to get a 'democratic' government.
He said: 'It shows the PM has acted wrongly in shutting down parliament. It demonstrates a contempt for democracy and an abuse of power.'
Labour's Keir Starmer told reporters in Brighton: 'We should be meeting as soon as we can, we're not closed down. It also means that we won't have a Queen's Speech because the parliamentary session has not been brought to an end.'
The Supreme Court suggested that Parliament can now immediately reconvene - but because of the unprecedented situation is still unclear exactly how this could happen.
Normally with a recall of the Commons the PM has responsibility for triggering MPs to sit again.
But Commons Speaker John Bercow and Lords Speaker Lord Fowler could be ready to declare that that Houses will sit tomorrow – or even later today.
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