Scottish court says Johnson can suspend Parliament - Fox News

A Scottish court says British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's planned suspension of Parliament is lawful.

The closely watched decision was revealed Wednesday. It is the first of several challenges to Johnson's maneuver that gives lawmakers little time to prevent Britain from crashing out of the European Union without an agreement on Oct. 31.

CHURCHILL'S GRANDSON TO BE EXPELLED FROM CONSERVATIVE PARTY FOR VOTING AGAINST BORIS JOHNSON

Transparency campaigner Gina Miller, who won a ruling in the Supreme Court in 2017 that stopped the government from triggering the countdown to Brexit without a vote in Parliament, has another legal challenge in the works.

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A human rights campaigner has also sued in Northern Ireland, arguing that the historic Good Friday accord that brought peace is in jeopardy because of Johnson's actions.

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https://www.foxnews.com/world/scottish-court-says-johnson-can-suspend-parliament

2019-09-04 09:45:00Z
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Maps: Track Hurricane Dorian's Path - The New York Times

Hurricane Dorian was downgraded to a Category 2 storm on Tuesday, after it battered the Bahamas and forecasters continued to warn of severe hurricane conditions across Florida and the southeastern coast of the United States.

5 >156 m.p.h. 4 130-156 m.p.h. 3 111-129 m.p.h. 2 96-110 m.p.h. 1 74-95 m.p.h. Tropical storm

Reported

Likely

Note: Areas shown as likely to receive tropical-storm-force winds have a 50 percent or higher chance of experiencing wind speeds of at least 39 miles per hour.

For the latest updates on the storm, follow our live coverage.

The storm finally began to move away from the Bahamas on Tuesday, after spending several days pounding the country. The composite animation below shows the storm’s movement since Thursday and is based on satellite imagery.

Composite animation by The New York Times ·Source: Satellite imagery from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

A hurricane warning was extended to about 180 miles of the Florida coast. The storm is also projected to approach South Carolina and Georgia as a major hurricane. In North Carolina, state officials warned that heavy rain could cause dangerous flooding beginning Wednesday evening.

Expected rainfall for the next seven days

Storm surge was expected from Florida to North Carolina as of Tuesday, and could cause ruinous flooding and wipe out roads and beaches.

Potential storm surge flooding

At least 1 foot

Predicting Dorian’s path has been particularly challenging for meteorologists. The National Hurricane Center uses various models that show where the storm could go using different forecasting techniques.

The map below shows the official forecast of National Hurricane Center compared to simulations from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, which are generated by running their forecast model many times using a range of initial conditions.

On Friday, President Trump approved an emergency declaration for Florida, giving the state increased federal support and resources. On Saturday, with the predicted path of the storm now changed, the governor of South Carolina declared a state of emergency as well, followed by similar declarations for North Carolina and parts of Georgia. With the lack of clarity on where the storm will hit, Florida residents wrestled with the question of whether to stay or evacuate.

Satellite image by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

For latest updates on Hurricane Dorian, follow our live coverage.

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2019-09-04 09:32:10Z
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Hong Kong Leader Carrie Lam to Withdraw Extradition Bill That Sparked Protests - The Wall Street Journal

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam at a news conference on Tuesday. Photo: jerome favre/Shutterstock

By

Natasha Khan and

Natasha Khan
The Wall Street Journal
• Biography
• @natashakhanhk
• natasha.khan@wsj.com

Neil Western

Updated Sept. 4, 2019 4:48 am ET

HONG KONG—Chief Executive Carrie Lam is set to withdraw the widely unpopular China extradition bill that sparked a tumultuous summer of unrest in the city, people familiar with the matter said.

The concession will meet one of five demands from the opposition movement and is likely aimed at weakening support for the protests from the wider population, though it isn't clear how successful the move will be in reducing the tensions that have gripped the city for three months.

Protests against the bill in June led Mrs. Lam to suspend the legislation—which would have allowed citizens to be sent for trial in mainland China’s opaque justice system—but her failure to formally scrap the proposal has fueled mass peaceful protests and more violent hard-core activists who have clashed with police.

What Hong Kong Protesters Want

What started off as a demonstration against a controversial extradition bill has become a series of massive protests with broad political demands. Here is why so many Hong Kongers keep taking to the streets in a leaderless movement and whether their goals can be achieved. Photo: Thomas Peter/Reuters

The protests have now morphed into a broader opposition movement with additional demands, including an inquiry into the Hong Kong Police Force’s handling of the demonstrations and calls for greater democracy, which has angered Beijing.

Hong Kong stocks jumped on reports of the planned legislation withdrawal. The city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 4% on Wednesday, its biggest one-day gain since November.

Mrs. Lam’s move is likely aimed at turning the tide of public opinion that has seen her approval ratings and satisfaction with the government hit record lows since China regained sovereignty over the former British colony in 1997.

Last week, Mrs. Lam told people at a private meeting that the unrest had become a national security and sovereignty issue for Beijing. That, she told attendees, limited her options in trying to end the political crisis, according to a leaked audio recording obtained by Reuters. The comments suggested a rift with officials in Beijing who have taken a tough stance against opposition voices, labeling the more radical violent protesters terrorists and revolutionaries.

At a Tuesday briefing, a spokesman for Beijing’s top body overseeing Hong Kong affairs said it was important for people to distinguish between peaceful protests and “violent crimes and activities challenging ‘one country, two systems,’” under which Hong Kong was promised 50 years of semiautonomy; its citizens have more freedoms than mainland Chinese citizens do.

Related Coverage

• ‘Mom Says Come Home’: Hong Kong Protests Divide Families
• Carrie Lam Says She Never Tried to Resign
• Mainland Chinese Sneak Into Hong Kong’s Protests—to Support the Cause
• Hong Kong Protests Force Companies to Choose: Their Employees or China
• Hong Kong Protests: From Kill the Bill to the ‘Revolution of Our Time’

The unrest has torn a hole in Hong Kong’s economy, dented its reputation as an international finance center and a safe place to do business. Retailers and tourism have been sharply hit and a number of the city’s biggest companies—including developers and the city’s flagship airline Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. —are feeling the pain after being dragged into the conflict.

Thousands of workers went on strike this week and university students and high school schoolchildren across the city boycotted classes and staged playground protests, dashing government hopes that the opposition movement would peter out once school started again.

Mrs. Lam’s refusal to use the word “withdrawal” had angered many. She suspended the bill June 15, but a mass rally demanding she withdraw the bill a day later drew a record turnout of two million people, according to organizers’ estimates. In July, Mrs. Lam said the bill was “dead,” although opposition groups said without a formal withdrawal, the city’s legislature could quickly revive it for a reading and vote.

After local media reported the withdrawal, thousands of protesters took to the social media app Telegram to say the concession wasn’t enough and they would continue to push for all their demands.

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Protesters Return to Hong Kong’s Streets

Black-clad demonstrators jammed the city a day after the chief executive delayed indefinitely an unpopular extradition bill

 

 

Former student leader Joshua Wong left prison Monday after being jailed for his role in leading the 2014 pro-democracy protests known as the Umbrella Movement.

tyrone siu/Reuters

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How effective the move will be at reducing tensions remains to be seen. Many people in the city are weary of the unrest that has closed subway stations, the city’s airport and hurt businesses. Yet anger at authorities has risen as police have been criticized for heavy handed treatment of protesters and local officials have been accused of turning deaf ears to society.

At near-daily protests in the city, demonstrators chant “five demands! Can’t even have one less!” In addition to the bill’s withdrawal and an investigation into police conduct, protesters also want a removal of a “riot” designation for a demonstration on June 12, amnesty for all who have been arrested since early June and greater democracy, a demand that analysts believe is unobtainable at this time.

Street occupations in 2014, demanding universal suffrage in the election of the city’s leader, fizzled out without any concessions from Beijing.

—Joyu Wang and Steven Russolillo contributed to this article.

Write to Natasha Khan at natasha.khan@wsj.com

Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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2019-09-04 08:48:00Z
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Hong Kong's embattled leader will reportedly announce withdrawal of the bill that sparked protests - CNBC

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam will reportedly announce the withdrawal of a contentious extradition bill that has sparked months of mass protests and dampened investor sentiment.

According to the South China Morning Post and other local media reports, Lam is due to make the announcement on Wednesday. CNBC sources confirmed that Lam will be calling for an urgent meeting with pro-Beijing supporters on Wednesday, but the agenda has not been confirmed.

The full withdrawal of the bill is one of five demands that protesters have been fighting for.

The proposed bill would have allowed people in Hong Kong to be extradited to mainland China for trial. Despite Lam's suspension of the bill in July, protesters continued to rally. On Sunday, the city saw it's most violent day since mass protests broke out in early June.

The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong soared more than 4% during Wednesday afternoon trade following reports the bill will be withdrawn.

The reported meeting comes a day after Lam quelled rumors of Beijing's rejection to her resignation. She said on Tuesday she had never asked the Chinese government to let her resign to end Hong Kong's political crisis.

Hong Kong was a British colony until 1997, when it became a special administrative region of China under the "one country, two systems" framework which allows the territory a certain degree of legal and economic autonomy. There are rising concerns among the ct the territory's citizens are now concerned that their civil rights are being eroded under Beijing's rule.

Hong Kong protesters released their five demands in July. The demands include the following:

• fully withdraw from a proposed bill that would allow Hong Kong people to be extradited to mainland China
• retract any characterization of the movement as a "riot"
• drop all charges against anti-extradition protesters
• set up an independent committee to investigate the use of force by Hong Kong police
• universal suffrage in elections for the city's chief executive officer and legislature by 2020.

— CNBC's Vivian Kam contributed to this report.

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2019-09-04 08:09:44Z
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Fisherman watched helplessly as wife drowned in hurricane - CNN

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2019-09-04 06:29:21Z
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These satellite images show Grand Bahama before and after Dorian's wrath - CNN

For comparison, we've included an image that shows the same regions of the island prior to Hurricane Dorian:

Grand Bahama Island was still in the path of Hurricane Dorian on Tuesday and the area continues to endure devastating weather conditions produced by the hurricane's eyewall, according to the National Hurricane Center.

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2019-09-03 14:24:00Z
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All eyes on parliament as UK faces pivotal day on Brexit - Aljazeera.com

The United Kingdom's Parliament is set for a heated showdown, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson facing a rebellion by members of his own party as the chance of a snap election to resolve a three-year deadlock over Brexit appears to increase.

As MPs return from summer recess on Tuesday, rebel and opposition legislators aim to seize control of the parliamentary agenda and introduce a bill to prevent the UK from crashing out of the European Union on October 31 without a divorce agreement, or no-deal Brexit.

Phillip Hammond, a former finance minister and a member of Johnson's ruling Conservative Party, told BBC Radio those opposed to a no-deal Brexit had the numbers to force the government's hand.

"I think there will be enough people to get this over the line," he said.

"I think there's a group of Conservatives who feel very strongly that now is a time where we have to put the national interest ahead of any threats to us personally or to our careers." 

Brexit crisis deepens as Tory rebellion mounts (3:10)

According to the BBC, the bill will force the prime minister to ask for Brexit to be delayed until January 31, 2020, unless legislators had approved a new deal, or voted in favour of a no-deal exit by October 19.

But if it passes, Johnson may call a snap election for October 14, according to media reports.

Al Jazeera'a Laurence Lee, reporting from London, said the vote "is going to be very, very close".

"Despite all the pressure the government has been putting on conservative MPs, including threats they will be kicked out of the party, it is still thought there are sufficient numbers who are so sure that a no-deal Brexit would be catastrophic for the country that they are prepared to vote against their own government."

'No ifs or buts'

About 20 Conservative legislators are preparing to rebel, according to British media, and party whips have told them they could be expelled from the party and banned from standing for the Conservatives at the next election. 

Legislators opposed to a no-deal Brexit do not have much time, as Johnson has controversially decided to suspend parliament next week for more than a month, in a move critics say is aimed at blunting opposition to a no-deal departure. 

Johnson won a race for the leadership of Conservative Party in July, becoming by default the country's prime minister following the resignation of his predecessor, Theresa May. 

"I want everybody to know - there are no circumstances in which I will ask Brussels to delay. We are leaving on the 31st of October, no ifs or buts," Johnson said at a hastily arranged press conference on Monday. 

"I don't want an election. You don't want an election. Let's get on with the people's agenda," he added.

An election would thrust Brexit onto an uncertain path with three main options: a Brexit-supporting government under Johnson, a Labour government led by leader Jeremy Corbyn, or a hung parliament that could lead to another referendum. In the June 23, 2016 plebiscite, 17.4 million voters, or 51.9 percent, backed leaving the EU while 16.1 million, or 48.1 percent, supported staying.

Johnson was elected by members of the Conservative Party campaigning on a "do-or-die" pledge to deliver Brexit, while also promising to renegotiate May's withdrawal deal with the  European Union.

The bloc, however, is adamant it will not renegotiate the agreement struck with his predecessor.

A no-deal Brexit is considered dangerous because it will sever decades of seamless trade with the single market of 500 million, with many experts predicting a no-deal Brexit could tip the UK's economy into a recession. But Johnson insists the potential for leaving without a deal must remain as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the EU.

Amid the uncertainty, the pound sterling fell as low as $1.1960 on Tuesday, down about a cent on the day before, stabilising around $1.1990.

That was its lowest level since a "flash crash" in October 2016, when uncertainty after the Brexit vote was particularly high.

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2019-09-03 11:18:00Z
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