The Queen may be asked by Boris Johnson to suspend parliament ahead of the Brexit deadline in October.

The suspension is currently expected to start at around mid-September, and it would mean that MPs won’t have much time to pass any laws to stop Boris Johnson from securing a no deal Brexit.

This date is expected to be confirmed by the Privy Council at Balmoral later today.

MPs have been on their summer break and are set to return on Monday 3 September, but a suspended parliament could see them prevented from introducing laws to stop a no deal Brexit on 31 October

What does it mean to suspend parliament?

Parliament can be suspended by The Queen on the advice of the Privy Council.

A statement from Queen Elizabeth would be read in the House of Lords to confirm the decision, followed by the same statement being read by the Speaker of the House of Commons.

Parliamentary proceeding would then conclude and both the House of Commons and House of Lords won’t meet again until parliament’s state opening.

No motions or questions can be tabled during this time, and new laws can’t be passed until parliament returns.

What does proroguing mean?

Proroguing is the official term for suspending parliament, and it is specifically defined as the act of discontinuing a session of parliament.

Prorogation is the the term used to describe the period between the end of the session and the beginning of the next session.

All parliamentary business is ended, while Public Bills must be carried over from one session to the next, subject to agreement.

The act can’t be voted for by MPs, and can only be issued by the Queen after advice from the prime minister.

The process is different to dissolving parliament, which takes place during a general election and sees MPs give up their seats to campaign.

When was parliament last suspended?

Prorogation is a standard procedure in UK government, it usually happens once a year for a short period, usually in April or May.

In the past has been used outside of the normal parliamentary calendar under controversial circumstances by previous rulers.

During the 1600’s King Charles I had also dissolved parliament and gave a prorogation speech after he was refused financial support.

He then went on to rule for eleven years with a parliament, which is often referred to as the eveln years tyranny.

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