Outrage after Prime Minister Boris Johnson secures Parliament suspension

The Prime Minister sought to suspend Parliament until October 14, saying he did not want to wait until after Brexit "before getting on with our plans to take this country forward".

But the move has sparked outrage among Remainer MPs, who claim it has been designed to cut the amount of time available for them to pass a law blocking a no-deal departure from the EU on Halloween.

The Queen has been dragged into Westminster’s bitter Brexit battle after Mr Johnson asked her to suspend Parliament for more than a month.

The Prime Minister will temporarily close down the Commons from the second week of September until October 14 when there will be a Queen’s Speech to open a new session of Parliament.

The Queen approved the order on Wednesday afternoon to prorogue Parliament no earlier than September 9 and no later than September 12, until October 14.

Labour deputy leader Tom Watson, the MP for West Bromwich East, said: "This is an unprecedented attempt to stop Parliament from having its say.

"Wherever you stand on the Brexit debate, to close down Parliament to get your own way will concern everyone.

"When a Prime Minister locks the doors to elected representatives, most people would describe it as a banana republic."

Wolverhampton South East Labour MP Pat McFadden accused Mr Johnson of attempting to force through Brexit by suspending Parliament.

"The Government's defence will be that this is normal, but it is anything but normal," he said. "While it is true that Parliament stops for a few days before a Queen's Speech, it is usually three or four days, not five weeks.

"Whatever Boris Johnson claims about this being nothing to do with Brexit, no one will believe it.

"It is clearly designed to stop Parliament from doing its job in the run up to October 31 and to allow him to proceed with Brexit without Parliamentary scrutiny."

WATCH: PM outlines plans

Mr McFadden said he believed a general election in the next couple of months was now "highly likely", with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn likely to call a confidence vote in the Government next week.

Downing Street has confirmed that it would call a general election should the government lose such a vote.

Wolverhampton North East MP Emma Reynolds accused Mr Johnson of adopting "an anti-democratic and irresponsible way to govern".

“We are two months away from crashing out of the EU with no-deal, which would have a disastrous effect on jobs in manufacturing across the West Midlands and here in Wolverhampton," she said.

"I could never support no-deal.

“Last week I backed a cross-party letter to ensure MPs were in Parliament throughout the next two months so we can make decisions on the key aspects of Brexit and work out the best way forward.

"We live in a parliamentary democracy where the government’s plans – whatever colour their party is – are rightly open to scrutiny. I want to maximise what little time we have left, the Prime Minister only wants to waste it.”

Birmingham Labour MP Jess Phillips said Mr Johnson was "not fooling anyone" with his "latest wicked wheeze".

In a letter to the Prime Minister, she accused him of initiating a constitutional crisis and preventing crucial issues from being debated, citing the Domestic Violence Bill as legislation that will be sidelined should Parliament shut down.

Some Tory MPs across the West Midlands have spoken in support of the Prime Minister's decision.

Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant backed the move, saying that Brexit must be delivered "by whatever means".

"The Speaker of the House of Commons has made it clear that he opposes Brexit," he said. "Other MPs do not want Brexit with or without a deal.

"But Parliament voted overwhelmingly to give the British people the choice. Boris Johnson is right to deliver that choice – by whatever means."

Brexiteer Eddie Hughes insisted the move had "nothing to do with Brexit".

"We have already had the longest parliamentary session since the war. We need a new Queen's Speech so the Government can set out its plans for a whole host of legislation for the years ahead," the Tory MP for Walsall North said.

"In order to do that we need to prorogue Parliament, and this is as good a time as any to do it."

Aldridge-Brownhills MP Wendy Morton said she supported the decision. "People want Parliament to make progress on Brexit. So do I," she added.

Delivering Brexit is a key priority of this Government, but it's important to not lose sight of other important domestic matters and legislation such as crime , the NHS, and cutting the cost of living."

Mr Johnson said it was "completely untrue" that Brexit was the motivation for his move, insisting it was time for a new session of Parliament to set out his "exciting agenda".