SUNDAY 25 AUGUST 2019Johnson takes legal advice on
suspending parliament
Emmanuel Macron and Boris Johnson in Biarritz yesterday (AP)
CHIARA GIORDANO
Boris Johnson is seeking to suspend parliament for five weeks in a bid to block MPs from extending Brexit
further, according to a leaked email. The prime minister has asked attorney general Geoffrey Cox whether
parliament can be shut down from 9 September, The Observer reported.
An email from senior government advisers to an adviser in Mr Johnson’s office, sent within the last 10 days,
claims the prime minister recently requested guidance on the legality of such a move, known as proroguing,
the newspaper said.
However a spokesman for No 10 denied the claim yesterday, saying it was “entirely false”.