Is this a Coup d’Etat?

Quite astonishing that this question apparently is now the heated topic of conversation the length and breadth of the benighted land I once knew as home….with some people in little doubt that the five-week suspension of Parliament which starts next week is precisely that – and the government arguing, on the other hand, that it is a routine affair…    

These, of course, are very uncivil times in which emotional and insulting words are too casually thrown around. “Words”, however, “are important – they are all we have…..”

Some words have a precise meaning which can be undermined when used as an insult….which is perhaps what Napoleon meant when he apparently said

“Why and how are words so important that they cannot be too often used”.

Fascist is one recent example (although, for me, all adjectives ending in “ist” run this danger). TS Eliot put it best when he wrote….

“Words strain,
Crack and sometimes break, under the burden,
Under the tension, slip, slide, perish,
Decay with imprecision, will not stay in place,
Will not stay still.”

Thinking before we act or speak is always advisable…   Parents used to advise their teenage kids to “bite their tongue” after blurting out a questionable remark….but that probably shows my age…

So my first reaction is that talk of a “coup” is not all that helpful.

Wikipedia’s entry for "prorogation" is quite useful. I certainly had no recollection of John Major having used it mid March 1997 to avoid having to answer questions about the “cash for questions” affair – leading to New Labour’s election 6 weeks later…

But a lot of people have a vague memory of its use by Charles I in the 17^th century – leading to a certain event known as the English Civil War…

But, normally, the “prorogation” (or suspension) of Parliament is a routine matter lasting a few days….But there is something called the “Party Conference Season” – the 4 week period at the end of September and beginning of October when the British political parties hold their Annual Conferences.

So, technically, it is true that the prorogation adds only a few days to what, otherwise, would have been a normal parliamentary recess…..

But these, patently, are not normal times. And it has been all too easy for “Remainers” to paint the abnormally long period of prorogation as a denial of government accountability….

There are at least 2 blogs which focus entirely on constitutional issues and it is interesting to see what they have been saying. The Constitution Unit has had only one post on the question – to which its answer is very clear…it’s “improper” and should be reversed.

UK Constitutional Law has a more varied response…. And, of course, the two legal appeals so far made against the prorogation have failed – with the Supreme Court making the final decision in a week or so…

So for those of a betting nature, I would simply remind them that the government generally has the inside track…..

Update; Andrew Rawnsley of the Observer is always good for a reflective Sunday piece on the week’s politics in the UK which tries to look round all the corners…Today’s also suggests that resignation is on the cards

pps; How naive I am to complain about loose language. My blog hits have in the past week limped along at under 100 a day. Until the weekend when they first went to 500 and have in past 24 hours hit the 1000 mark......proof (if I really needed it) that it pays to use extreme language!!
ppps A very good balanced analysis from a public admin Prof with echoes of Jim Callaghan’s famous question  can be read here