In a highly controversial move, Queen Elizabeth II approved of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s plan to suspend Parliament between September 9 and October 14. It is within the Prime Minister’s duties to schedule an end-of-summer break for MPs and to appoint the date for the Queen’s Speech, which signals the opening of a new session of Parliament after the break.
Nevertheless, many have been outraged by Johnson’s decision to give MPs such a long time away from Parliament, especially considering there are just two months left until the United Kingdom’s scheduled departure from the European Union. Johnson’s opponents see the move as an attempt to prevent any parliamentary interruptions into the Prime Minister’s plan, which appears to be a default no-deal Brexit.
The Queen’s approval of the plan led to the hashtag #AbolishtheMonarchy trending on Twitter as UK citizens questioned whether the monarch really values democracy. The Queen’s representatives stated that the date for the Queen’s Speech is to be determined by the PM and that the monarch does not have a say in it, thereby suggesting that the Queen had no choice but to approve.
Besides the Labour party, who is in opposition to Johnson’s Conservatives, there was also a sharp negative reaction from Ireland. After all, the major disagreement between the UK government and the EU has to do with the Irish backstop. Ireland is a member of the EU with very close ties to Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK. The Irish backstop’s goal was to protect the EU’s market, while also ensuring there is no hard border between the two Irelands. However, a default hard Brexit would mean a border and a visa regime between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Johnson’s cabinet has still not produced an alternative plan for the Irish border.
