Government to ask Queen to suspend Parliament

The Prime Minister's plan will be considered in a Privy Council meeting at the Queen's Balmoral estate, according to reports.

The House of Commons is currently expected to resume sitting after its summer break on September 3 and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and other opposition leaders have agreed to seek legislative changes to prevent a no-deal Brexit.

But, according to the BBC, the Prime Minister will seek to suspend Parliament from around September 11 until the Queen's Speech - a process known as prorogation.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "So it seems that Boris Johnson may actually be about to shut down Parliament to force through a no-deal Brexit.

"Unless MPs come together to stop him next week, today will go down in history as a dark one indeed for UK democracy."

In response to the reports of a parliamentary suspension, Tory Party chairman James Cleverley said: "Or to put is another way: Government to hold a Queen's Speech, just as all new governments do."

By David Hughes, PA Political Editor