British parliament outwits Boris Johnson
British MPs have thwarted the plans of the man expected to become the UK's new prime minister, Boris Johnson, who is flirting with a no-deal Brexit that parliament does not want. They voted for an amendment that would stop parliament being prorogued over the planned Brexit on 31 October. Was this the right thing to do?
MPs shooting themselves in the foot
The British parliament will damage the country if it stymies Johnson, the Daily Telegraph warns:
“Limiting his options is a monumental act of self-harm. If Mr Johnson doesn't get a proper renegotiation then he'll be left with two unpalatable scenarios. He could trigger a constitutional crisis by crashing out of the EU against the will of Parliament. MPs probably can't stop him from doing this ... Alternatively, Britain could end up having a general election. This would likely result either in a Corbyn-led socialist coalition, which would be an utter disaster, or a Johnson-led Brexit coalition with Nigel Farage that would be even more inclined to walk away without a deal.”
Don't expect the Brexiteers to see reason
The EU must maintain a united front, warns the Wiener Zeitung:
“The future EU Commission must limit the damage as much as possible in the case of a no-deal Brexit, and the remaining states must stick together in talks with the British. Johnson has already announced that he wants to begin new, bilateral partnerships with France and Germany. The EU countries should not allow themselves to be divided, in spite of all their national interests. As prime minister, Johnson could drive his country into political and economic isolation. He's very good at fuelling his anti-European rhetoric with the narrative about the over-powerful Germans. It's unlikely that Brexiteers will admit their mistake at the end. We should not help them make the EU responsible for everything that is going wrong on the island.”