‘He should just keep quiet’: Boris allies lash ex-PM John Major for ‘crazy’ threat to take Johnson to COURT if he tries to suspend Parliament to force No Deal Brexit
- Former PM Sir John Major has laid into Boris Johnson over his Brexit plans
- Sir John is prepared to bring judicial review if a PM tries to bypass Parliament
- Admitted Queen’s decision cannot be challenged but said PM’s advice could be
The Tory Brexit civil war escalated dramatically today as former PM John Major threatened to take Boris Johnson to court if he tries to bypass Parliament.
Sir John said he would back a judicial review if Mr Johnson tried to suspend the Commons to stop it blocking No Deal at the end of October.
The grandee said there was ‘no conceivable justification’ for proroguing Parliament to avoid its objections.
But allies of Mr Johnson hit back by branding Sir John’s threat ‘crazy’. ‘The role of a former PM is largely to keep quiet,’ one told MailOnline.
The source swiped that Sir John ‘lacked awareness’, claiming he is so unpopular with party activists that his interventions actually help Mr Johnson.
The dramatic intervention came after Conservative leadership favourite Mr Johnson again refused to rule out using the extraordinary tactic to secure Brexit by his deadline.
Sir John Major (pictured) said he would back a judicial review if Boris Johnson tried to suspend the Commons to stop it blocking No Deal at the end of October
In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Sir John said: ‘In order to close down parliament the prime minister would have to go to her Majesty the Queen and ask for her permission to prorogue.
‘If her first minister asks for that permission it is almost inconceivable that the Queen will do anything other than grant it.
‘She is then in the midst of a constitutional controversy that no serious politician should put the Queen in the middle of.
‘If that were to happen there would be a queue of people who would seek judicial review. I for one would be prepared to go and seek judicial review.’
He added: ‘The Queen’s decision cannot be challenged in law, but the PM’s advice to the Queen can be challenged.’
But a senior ally of Mr Johnson told MailOnline: ‘It is a shame that he keeps intervening… There is a lack of awareness.’
On the idea of a judicial review, the source added: ‘It is crazy.’
Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who supports Mr Johnson, said he did not believe Parliament would be suspended because the leadership front runner had the ‘force of personality’ to bring people together and reach a deal.
Mr Hancock, who opposed prorogation during his own leadership campaign, told Today: ‘I do not think that it’s going to happen, I understand why Boris hasn’t ruled it out.
‘But ultimately when you have to choose between who is going to be the next prime minister, who you want to be the next prime minister, you have to take everything into account.
‘I have chosen to back Boris because he is the best person to deliver Brexit with a deal.’
In an ITV leadership debate last night, Jeremy Hunt warned that trying to bypass Parliament over Brexit could spark ‘civil war’.
Asked if he would be prepared to suspend the Commons to force No Deal in October, Mr Hunt said: ‘When that has happened in the past, when Parliament has been shut down against its will, we actually had a civil war.
‘I think it would be a rather curious thing to do, if this is about taking back control for Parliament, to actually shut it down.’
Mr Hunt challenged Mr Johnson to rule it out, but the former London mayor said: ‘I’m not going to take anything off the table, any more than I’m going to take no deal off the table.
‘I think it’s absolutely bizarre at this stage in the negotiations for the UK – yet again – to be weakening its own position.’
During an ITV debate last night, Mr Johnson repeatedly refused to rule out proroguing Pariament to force Brexit by Halloween
Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who supports Mr Johnson, said he did not believe Parliament would be suspended