Boris Johnson's move to suspend Parliament unlawful, rules UK court

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to suspend the UK Parliament less than two months before Britain is due to leave the European Union was unlawful, a Scottish court ruled Wednesday, although it didn't order the suspension to be overturned.

Judges at Scotland's highest court in Edinburgh said Britain's Supreme Court must make the final decision. A hearing there is due to begin Tuesday.

A group of about 70 lawmakers is challenging the government's decision to prorogue, or formally shut down, Parliament, for five weeks until Oct. 14 just over two weeks before Britain is due to leave the EU.

Johnson claims he took the action so that he can start afresh on his domestic agenda at a new session of Parliament next month. But the suspension also gives him a respite from rebellious lawmakers as he plots his next move to break the political deadlock and lead Britain out of the EU by Oct. 31.

Opponents argue that Johnson is trying to evade democratic scrutiny. Last week, a court in Edinburgh rejected the lawmakers' challenge, saying it was a matter for politicians, not the courts, to decide.

But that was overturned Wednesday on appeal.

Jolyon Maugham, a lawyer who is part of the claim, said: "We believe that the effect of the decision is that Parliament is no longer prorogued."

"I have never been able to contemplate the possibility that the law could be that our sovereign Parliament might be treated as an inconvenience by the prime minister," he said.

UK PM urges EU leaders to end opposition to renegotiate terms of Brexit

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government has urged EU leaders again to drop their opposition to renegotiating the terms of Brexit, claiming recent European elections required a change of approach.

Johnson, who took office late last month, says he wants to leave the European Union with a deal but insists the current terms are unacceptable and if necessary Britain will exit on October 31 with no agreement at all.

In an article in the Mail on Sunday newspaper, Johnson's Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay said European Parliament elections in May had changed the political dynamic and urged EU leaders to amend the mandate of their chief negotiator, Michel Barnier.

"The political realities have changed since Mr Barnier's instructions were set," Barclay wrote.

"Since the last mandate was agreed, 61 percent of all the EU states' MEPs have changed. Such a fundamental shift illustrates the need for a change of approach.

"Mr Barnier needs to urge EU leaders to consider this if they too want an agreement, to enable him to negotiate in a way that finds common ground with the UK.

"Otherwise, no deal is coming down the tracks." Former prime minister Theresa May quit after delaying Brexit twice while she tried unsuccessfully to get the divorce terms she struck with Brussels through the British parliament.

But the EU has refused to reopen the deal, the result of 17 months of tough negotiations.

Johnson has ramped up preparations for leaving without any agreement.

However, some British lawmakers have vowed to stop him, fearing the economic consequences of severing ties with Britain's closest trading partner overnight.