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posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday September 13 2017, @07:34AM   Printer-friendly
from the returning-sovereignty-to-parliament dept.

A controversial motion that will grant the government the power to force through Brexit legislation has been passed.

[...] It means the Conservatives, despite not winning a majority at the general election, will take control of a powerful Commons committee, and grant themselves the power to force through legislation without it being voted on or debated in parliament.

With parliament needing to change, amend or import wholesale thousands of laws and regulation to prepare the UK for its exit from the European Union, the EU Withdrawal Bill has been designed to allow for new laws and regulations to be passed via controversial legislative device called a statutory instrument, which are debated in tiny standing committees.

But the government has now voted to give itself a majority on the little known Committee of Selection, which decides the make up of those committees, and in so doing has seized control of the whole process.

[...] Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Alistair Carmichael commented: "This is a sinister power grab by an increasingly authoritarian Prime Minister.

"The Tories didn't win a majority at the election, but are now hijacking Parliament to try and impose their extreme Brexit on the country.

"It is a bitter irony that Brexiteers who spent their careers championing parliamentary sovereignty have now chosen to sell it down the river.

Source: The Independent


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  • (Score: 2) by theluggage on Wednesday September 13 2017, @08:04PM

    by theluggage (1797) on Wednesday September 13 2017, @08:04PM (#567430)

    - The House of Lords, who usually lets the Commons get its way but not always.

    No, if the House of Lords blocks it then the Commons can still invoke the Parliament Act to force it though. The Lords can't actually stop the "elected" house from doing what they want - but they can draw a lot of attention to it.

    Queen Elizabeth II, who technically has the power to refuse Royal Assent to the new law.

    Don't hold your breath. Brexit is gonna be traumatic and divisive enough without the country becoming a republic at the same time.

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