I'm sure that folk from across the Pond have more detailed readouts on this, but a high UK court has ruled that the government can't simply trigger the process to exit the European Union based on the non-binding referendum which narrowly passed it, but that Parliament must vote on the matter.
That's going to push the timing of all this out some, and doubtless lead to a lot of process- and party-alliance shenanigans, but it does open up possibilities for the Brexit referendum to be overridden — which may actually reflect what most folk in the UK (certainly in certain parts) actually want.
While the EU has its flaws, deciding to break away from it seems to me to have been an error; if so, this is a chance to correct it.
UK court: Gov’t can’t trigger EU exit without Parliament
Britain’s High Court brought government plans for leaving the European Union screeching to a halt Thursday, ruling that the prime minister can’t trigger the U.K.’s exit from the b…
+Dave Hill There's an even more important thing, would you believe? It's not just that Mrs May has been reminded we are not a dictatorship, with her able to carry out Rupert Murdochs orders without Parliament doing anything. The point is that MPs have to decide whether or not we leave. All the discussion about what sort of #Brexit we should have is just a dead cat thrown on the table. The referendum was merely a consultation, and while it should be taken into account by MPs, so also should their knowledge, and that of experts, as to whether leaving would be in the best interests of the country.
The number of MPs who appear not to know these things is disturbing. Here's more, and it's excellent…
http://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/articles/professor_ac_grayling_on_why_mps_must_act_now_or_see_the_uk_shrink_1_4754430
http://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/articles/professor_ac_grayling_on_why_mps_must_act_now_or_see_the_uk_shrink_1_4754430
+Chris Blackmore Yes, the rush to declare Brexit a "done deal" after the non-binding advisory referendum always struck me as a bit suspicious (not knowing the fine points of British law and custom, even if the dynamics of a parliamentary setup are a bit different than the US arrangement).
And in either system, the representative government does not simply obey orders from the polls, but exercises their judgment (as Burke so eloquently put it http://wist.info/burke-edmund/818/).
The problem is that although a majority of MPs are Pro EU, if you break it down a majority of CONSTITUENCIES voted out.
The really annoying thing is that many leavers would have voted for reasons that are based on lies, or for non-EU reasons. For instance, despite being corrected repeatedly, the Leave campaign continued with the £350m week lie. The corrections were drowned out by a hate filled Right wing press. One man interviewed said ‘it was all about the Muslims’ (ie nothing to do with the EU). You’ll have seen the reports of hate crimes following the vote- of which I am profoundly ashamed that my so-called countrymen should do this.
It turns out they could not have known what they voted for, because those leading the Leave DON’T KNOW themselves.
The Hate Press are also attacking the judges, criticising them for upholding the law when ‘the people have spoken’.
+Dave Hill I am immensely grateful for that link. I propose to send it to my MP, who is of the opinion that a small majority in favour of #Brexit here means he must vote for it. Mind you, he's a fuckwit anyway…
+Chris Blackmore Certainly! Here is a bit broader context around that quote (with its own fine lines in it): http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch13s7.html