If the Supreme Court cannot protect us from abuses of power, then who will?

Constitutions inevitably evolve, but they do so through the interaction of many competing forces – not just on the whim of one prime minister in a tight corner

Thursday 19 September 2019 20:19 BST
Comments
Proceedings on the third day of the hearing on prorogation
Proceedings on the third day of the hearing on prorogation

They say it takes one to know one, so the evidence provided by Sir John Major, former Conservative prime minister, about Boris Johnson, current Conservative prime minister, about the extraordinary prorogation of parliament has at least some curiosity value.

It is yet another “unprecedented” development of so many during the Brexit saga. Indeed, Sir John could, quite easily, have been joined by all of Mr Johnson’s living predecessors in attesting to his strange and unnatural suspension of the House of Commons. If they had turned up in court Sir John, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Theresa May would have made quite a spectacle. They’d not agree on very much, but it may be fairly said that they share a low-ish opinion of the qualities of the current resident of Number 10 Downing Street.

Like the others, Sir John has been there and done that in regard to prorogation. He has been labelled a “hypocrite” because he is supposed to have himself shut the Commons down early in 1997, to avoid giving extra publicity to the “cash for questions” controversy, but it is not entirely clear that it was either his intention or the effect of his decision. In any case, the decision he made at that time was not challenged in any court, and therefore its legality, or constitutionality, was not tested. In other words, even if Sir John is indeed the most awful hypocrite ever to stalk the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, hypocrisy is no more than a moral offence, usually dealt with in a trial by media.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in