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Boris Johnson loses Parliamentary majority, faces Brexit showdown
Britain's Parliament returns from its summer recess and is facing a titanic showdown over Prime Minister Boris Johnson's plans to leave the European Union. Here's what we know:
● Johnson has lost his majority in Parliament, with the defection of Conservative Phillip Lee to the Liberal Democrats.
● The opposition, including members of Johnson's party, is seeking to pass legislation to delay Brexit.
● Johnson has said that if his foes succeed he will call early elections.
List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom by length of tenure
#54: George Canning, 119 days (1827)
#55: Boris Johnson, 40 days (Incumbent) (2019)
See also: Brexit: Tory MP defects ahead of crucial no-deal vote
How Brexit Blew Up Britain's Constitution
(Score: 4, Informative) by theluggage on Wednesday September 04 2019, @04:38PM
It's actually a pretty strong argument for not making irrevocable decisions affecting the next couple of generations based on a simple majority in a single referendum with a simplistic yes/no question. The result would probably fail any test of statistical significance and could have been swayed by something as stupid as the weather on polling day.
Its a strong argument for having something like a parliamentary democracy that can debate, amend and change its mind, with regular elections to hold them to account. Next time, maybe, at least get parliament to write the bill first, then hold the referendum, so there's a clear, detailed proposal to vote on. Oh, and don't let the current PM and Chancellor run the campaign, because everybody hates them (whoever they are).