John Bercow vows to fight ‘with every breath’ to halt any bid by Boris Johnson to suspend Parliament to force through a No Deal Brexit
- Not even the Prime Minister can ‘get away’ with trying to prorogue Parliament
- John Bercow vowed to personally challenge Boris Johnson if he made attempt
- Commons Speaker pledged to fight any bid to suspend Parliament before Brexit
John Bercow pledged yesterday to fight with ‘every breath’ to halt any bid to suspend Parliament in the run-up to Brexit.
The Commons Speaker insisted that not even the Prime Minister would ‘get away’ with attempting to prorogue Parliament.
He also vowed to personally challenge Boris Johnson if he made any attempt to push through a No Deal Brexit. The Prime Minister has so far refused to rule out side-stepping Parliament to leave the EU.
The Commons Speaker, John Bercow (pictured), insisted that not even the Prime Minister would ‘get away’ with attempting to prorogue Parliament
At the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Mr Bercow said: ‘The one thing I feel strongly about is that the House of Commons must have its way.
‘And if there is an attempt to circumvent, to bypass or God forbid – to close down parliament, that is anathema to me.
‘I will fight with every breath in my body to stop that happening.
‘We cannot have a situation in which parliament is shut down.
‘We are a democratic society and parliament will be heard.
‘Nobody is going to get away, as far as I’m concerned, with stopping that happening.
‘Nobody should be afraid to say what he or she thinks.’
Mr Bercow also vowed to personally challenge Boris Johnson (pictured) if he made any attempt to push through a No Deal Brexit. The Prime Minister has so far refused to rule out side-stepping Parliament. Pictured, at a roundtable on the youth justice system yesterday
Asked by an audience member if parliament can stop a no-deal Brexit, Mr Bercow said: ‘Yes.’
His comments come as a court battle to stop Mr Johnson suspending parliament also got underway in Edinburgh.
More than 70 MPs and peers have urged the Court of Session to rule that proroguing parliament to ensure the UK leaves the EU without a deal is ‘unlawful and unconstitutional’.
A hearing has been scheduled for September 6 at the Edinburgh court.