Theresa May cannot trigger Brexit without putting it to an MPs’ vote in the House of Commons, the High Court has ruled.
In a landmark ruling, Lord Chief Justice Thomas said Mrs May did not have the right to set in motion Article 50, the official start of the two-year EU divorce proceedings, without consulting parliament.
The decision is a significant setback for the Prime Minister’s Brexit strategy – she announced at the Conservative Party Conference last month she would trigger Article 50 by the end of March.
The Government instantly announced it would appeal against the ruling and the two sides will now prepare for another showdown at the Supreme Court in early December.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said it was the Prime Minister’s intention to stick to the end of March deadline for Article 50.

Speaking outside the court, businesswoman Gina Miller, who brought the case with hairdresser Deir Dos Santos, welcomed the decision and said it would “bring sobriety” to Brexit proceedings.
In a statement from Mr Dos Santos, who voted to leave the EU, he said: “In her speech to the Conservative Party Conference the Prime Minister attacked me for bringing these proceedings as a claimant. She said that I was trying to subvert democracy. That was an unwarranted and irresponsible attack.
“As is my constitutional right I sought the protection of the court to stop unlawful government action. The court has now given me that protection.”
The ruling saw the pound up more than 1% against the dollar, at $1.24, in the immediate wake of the High Court announcement.
Unless the decision is overturned by the Supreme Court, or on further appeal to the European Court of Justice, then it will be for MPs to decide when to start the UK’s exit from the European Union.
Around two-thirds of MPs voted Remain but many will be reluctant to overturn the public’s decision. However, in constituencies where people voted Remain MPs could come under pressure from their voters to block Article 50.
It will allow MPs to refuse to start divorce proceedings until they are happy with the precise terms of the Brexit deal and the SNP MPs will likely be key here.
Speaking in the House of Commons moments after the ruling, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said: “The Government is disappointed by the court’s judgment.
“The country voted to leave the European Union in a referendum approved by Acts of Parliament. The Government is determined to respect the result of the referendum.
“This judgment raises important and complex matters of law and it’s right that we consider it carefully before deciding how to proceed.”
Opposition leaders Nicola Sturgeon, Tim Farron and Jeremy Corbyn, who have been calling for Mrs May to lay out her Brexit strategy more clearly, welcomed the ruling.
The Labour leader said: “This ruling underlines the need for the Government to bring its negotiating terms to Parliament without delay.
“Labour respects the decision of the British people to leave the European Union. But there must be transparency and accountability to parliament on the terms of Brexit.”
UKIP leader Nigel Farage said: “I now fear that every attempt will be made to block or delay the triggering of Article 50. If this is so, they have no idea of the level of public anger they will provoke.”
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said the judgment was “an example of the uncertainty that will characterise this process”.
The case has centred around the wording of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which says member states may leave the EU “in accordance with its own constitutional requirements”.
However, there is no clearly established “constitutional requirements” leaving both sides free to make their own definitions.
Making his judgment, the Lord Chief Justice said: “The Government does not have power under the Crown’s prerogative to give notice pursuant to Article 50 for the UK for the UK to withdraw from the European Union.”
Mrs May will discuss the Brexit process with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker on Friday in a phone call.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Theresa May says her government will challenge a High Court ruling that has stipulated that the country cannot leave the European Union (EU) without the permission of the British Parliament.
British Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Brexit Minister) David Davis said on Thursday 17.4 million Leave voters had given the government “the biggest mandate in history” during a referendum in June to leave the 28-nation bloc.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear the government’s appeal in December.
“The judges have laid out what we can’t do, and not exactly what we can do, but we’re presuming that it requires an act of parliament and therefore both Commons and Lords,” he said.
Parliamentarians are not likely to block Brexit outright, given that nearly 52 percent of Britons voted on 23 June to leave the EU.
Prime Minister May’s spokesman said the government was “determined to continue with our plans,” and had “no intention of letting” the ruling “derail Article 50 or the timetable we have set out.”
Investment manager Gina Miller, who brought the case to the High Court, said the premier should make the “wise decision of not appealing” against the High Court ruling.
“The result today is about all of us. It’s not about me or my team. It’s about our United Kingdom and all our futures,” she said.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has said Britain should keep its “options open” on whether or not to leave the EU until after Brexit talks with the bloc are completed.
During an interview last week with BBC radio, Blair described the EU referendum as “a catastrophe,” and said UK voters should be given the option of a second EU referendum. – Sky News, Press TV.
