Summary

Just when some of the details of Brexit were beginning to solidify, the UK High Court has thrown the whole process into disarray once again.

The UK High Court ruled that Parliament must be consulted before Article 50 can be triggered. As a result, we can expect a new round of high-stakes political wrangling at Westminster, one where nothing is off the table – even backpedaling on the decision to leave the European Union altogether.

Impact

The most immediate impact of the ruling is that Article 50 cannot be triggered until Parliament votes on it. The May government was originally expected to trigger Article 50 and initiate formal proceedings to leave the European Union by March, 2017.

The political outlook for Brexit has been fundamentally changed; what once looked like a done deal is now very much up in the air.

The parliamentary vote boils down to another political vetting of the referendum result, something the May government was desperate to avoid amidst the forecast gloom setting in around Brexit. Now all political parties, and all MPs, will be asked to go on record and cast their votes for or against. And though the Conservative Party enjoys a parliamentary majority, this is a party that was – and is – famously split on the question of Europe.