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Today’s ruling in short has supported the view that parliament must debate and vote upon any Brexit process. Yes the referendum made the decision, but the process is still dependent upon the will of parliamentary – don’t take my word for it, that’s effectively what the court’s ruling today has settled.

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3. What was the High Court Decision on Article 50?  

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3. What was the High Court Decision on Article 50?  

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A legal challenge to the government’s right to begin the official process of Brexit without parliamentary approval.•The High Court will consider whether ministers can invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the trigger for formal talks on separation, without MPs passing an act of Parliament.•The case is being brought by investment manager Gina Miller among others.•Ministers argue they can act under ancient powers of Royal Prerogative.

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The need for Parliament to give its approval before the Brexit process starts is of huge "constitutional importance", the High Court has heard.

QC Lord Pannick said the case "raises an issue... concerning the limits of the power of the executive".

The High Court is considering whether ministers can invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the trigger for formal talks, without MPs passing a new law.

But the government said the EU would not be rejoined via "the back door".

Ministers argue they are entitled to act under ancient powers of Royal Prerogative.

Prime Minister Theresa May has said she will activate Article 50, formally notifying the EU of the UK's intention to leave, by the end of next March. This follows the UK's decision to back Brexit in June's referendum by a margin of 51.9% to 48.1%.

The EU's other 27 members have said negotiations about the terms of the UK's exit - due to last two years - cannot begin until Article 50 has been invoked.

The judicial review was heard by the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, Lord Thomas.

Investment manager Gina Miller is among those contesting the government's authority to proceed without recourse to Parliament - arguing the principle of parliamentary sovereignty underpins the constitution and the rule of law in the country.

Her legal team, headed by constitutional lawyer and cross-bench peer Lord Pannick, is arguing that invoking Article 50 will threaten the rights of individuals enshrined in the 1972 European Communities Act - which paved the way for the UK to join the European Economic Community.

Only Parliament, they argue, can remove or reduce rights granted under law and Article 50 must have the consent of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Analysis
By Clive Coleman, BBC legal correspondent
In today's constitution the Royal Prerogative is basically a collection of executive powers held by the Crown.

They go back to medieval times but are now placed in the hands of ministers. They're used, for instance, in some areas of foreign affairs which Parliament has left to the government.

But prerogative powers remain controversial because they're exercised without any parliamentary authority.

The case has huge constitutional importance and should provide clarity on whether executive powers can, in effect, trump an act of Parliament.

Those bringing the case argue that legislation can only be altered by legislation. The government says it intends to give effect to the outcome of the referendum by bringing about the exit of the UK from the EU.

And that that is a proper constitutional and lawful step to take, using prerogative powers, in light of the referendum result and the democratic mandate it has provided.

Lord Pannick said the case was not concerned with the "political wisdom" of the country withdrawing from the EU and it was wrong to suggest that the legal challenge was "merely camouflage" for those who wanted to remain.

Ms Miller was entitled to say that "if we are to leave the EU then the steps to be taken which will deprive her of her rights under the 1972 Act, and other legislation, must be done in a lawful manner".

He said she accepted her challenge could only succeed "if we can satisfy the court that the defendant has no power to notify under royal prerogative powers".

Lord Pannick argued that she sovereignty of Parliament meant that what Parliament did "is entirely a matter for Parliament".

But Attorney General Jeremy Wright, who will speak for the government on Monday, said Mrs May could invoke Article 50 because "the country voted to leave the EU in a referendum approved by act of Parliament".

He added: "There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door, and no second referendum."

In July, High Court judges ruled that Ms Miller's should be the lead case in the action.

Other applicants include London hairdresser Deir Dos Santos, the People's Challenge group set up by Grahame Pigney and the campaign group Fair Deal for Expats.

According to documents published this summer, ministers believe the use of prerogative powers once held by the Sovereign but now residing in the executive to enact the referendum result is "constitutionally proper and consistent with domestic law".

For the courts to require Parliament to pass legislation to implement the outcome of the referendum would be an "impermissible" intrusion on its proceedings.

The hearing comes amid growing calls from MPs on all sides of the House for the UK's blueprint for its Brexit negotiations to be subject to greater parliamentary scrutiny.

While the government has not ruled out giving MPs a vote on the final settlement reached with the EU, it has said on several occasions that it will not hold a vote on the timing of Article 50 or its strategy ahead of negotiations.

The losing side in the case is likely to launch an appeal. It has already been announced that any appeal will be fast-tracked to the Supreme Court to ensure a final judgement before the end of the year.

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The need for Parliament to give its approval before the Brexit process starts is of huge "constitutional importance", the High Court has heard. QC Lord Pannick said the case "raises an issue... concerning the limits of the power of the executive".

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1. Brexit all you need to know about the UK leaving the EU

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1. Brexit all you need to know about the UK leaving the EU

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1. What does Brexit mean? 2.  What was the referendum’s breakdown across the UK? 3. What is the European Union (including a good mini-doco)? 4.  Who is going to negotiate Britain’s exit from the EU?  What do “soft” and “hard” Brexit mean?  5.  Will immigration be cut?  What does this mean for Scotland? 6.  What does it mean for Northern Ireland?  7. Could MPs block an EU exit?

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The UK stopped being a member of the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020.

For those not following every twist and turn, this is what you need to know.

What is Brexit?

Brexit - British exit - refers to the UK leaving the EU.

A public vote (known as a referendum) was held in June 2016, when 17.4 million people opted for Brexit. This gave the Leave side 52%, compared with 48% for Remain.

What is the European Union?

The EU is an economic and political union involving 28 European countries. It allows free trade, which means goods can move between member countries without any checks or extra charges. The EU also allows free movement of people, to live and work in whichever country they choose.

The UK joined in 1973 (when it was known as the European Economic Community) and it will be the first member state to withdraw.

What happens after Brexit day?

The UK formally left the EU on 31 January 2020, but there is still a lot to talk about and months of negotiation to come.

While the UK has agreed the terms of its EU departure, both sides still need to decide what their future relationship will look like.

This will need to be worked out during the transition period (which some prefer to call the implementation period), which began immediately after Brexit day and is due to end on 31 December 2020.

During this 11-month period, the UK will continue to follow all of the EU's rules and its trading relationship will remain the same.

What needs to be agreed?

The transition period is meant to give both sides some breathing space while a new free trade agreement is negotiated.

This is needed because the UK will leave the single market and customs union at the end of the transition. A free trade agreement will allow goods to move around the EU without checks or extra charges.

If a new one cannot be agreed in time, then the UK faces the prospect of having to trade with no deal in place. That would mean tariffs (taxes) on UK goods travelling to the EU and other trade barriers.

Aside from trade, many other aspects of the future UK-EU relationship will also need to be decided. For example:

Law enforcement, data sharing and security

Aviation standards and safety

Access to fishing waters

Supplies of electricity and gas

Licensing and regulation of medicines

Prime Minister Boris Johnson insists the transition period will not be extended, but the European Commission has warned that the timetable will be extremely challenging.

What is the Brexit deal?

The transition period and other aspects of the UK's departure were agreed in a deal called the withdrawal agreement.

Most of that was negotiated by Theresa May's government. But after Mr Johnson replaced her in July 2019, he negotiated some changes to it.

The key change is that under Mr Johnson's deal, a customs border will effectively be created between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. Some goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain will be subject to checks and will have to pay EU import taxes (known as tariffs).

These would be refunded if goods remain in Northern Ireland (ie are not moved to the Republic of Ireland).

The rest of the withdrawal agreement is largely unchanged from the one negotiated by Mrs May. This includes:

The rights of EU citizens in the UK and British citizens in the EU (which will remain the same during the transition)

How much money the UK is to pay the EU (estimated to be about £30bn).

Why did Brexit take so long?

Brexit was originally meant to happen on 29 March 2019, but the deadline was delayed twice after MPs rejected the deal negotiated by Mrs May, the prime minister at the time.

After MPs voted down the deal for a third time, Mrs May resigned.

Mr Johnson needed a Brexit extension of his own after MPs failed to get the revised deal passed into law.

This led to the new deadline of 31 January 2020.

Mr Johnson then called an early general election, to which MPs agreed.

The election, which happened on 12 December 2019, resulted in a Conservative majority of 80.

With a sizeable majority in Parliament, it proved straightforward to pass the Brexit legislation.
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The UK stopped being a member of the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020. For those not following every twist and turn, this is what you need to know. Brexit - British exit - refers to the UK leaving the EU.

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2. The Immediate Impact (one month after) of EU Referendum: 

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2. The Immediate Impact (one month after) of EU Referendum: 

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1. Create a mind map of the immediate impact of leaving the EU.