By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON (AA) – The U.K. government will have to seek an act of parliament before triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which will officially initiate Britain’s exit negotiations from the European Union, the country’s top court ruled Tuesday.
The decision announced by the Supreme Court’s president, Lord Neuberger, said the ruling came with an 8-3 majority of the judges.
“The supreme court…dismisses the secretary of state’s appeal. In a joint judgment of the majority, the supreme court holds that an Act of Parliament is required to authorise ministers to give notice of the decision of the UK to withdraw from the European Union,” the decision said.
After the announcement, Jeremy Wright, Britain’s attorney general, said outside the court that the government was “disappointed” with the ruling.
The Supreme Court also decided that the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh and Northern Ireland assemblies did not have a say in the case.
A referendum held last June saw British voters decide to leave the 28-member bloc, a decision which made David Cameron resign as prime minister shortly thereafter.
The ruling Conservative Party later nominated Theresa May as the new premier to lead the country’s exit negotiations with the EU.
However, a decision by the country’s High Court said the May government could not trigger Article 50 without parliament’s permission, but the government appealed this ruling at the Supreme Court, which took it up last December.
May has insisted her government will trigger Article 50 and said last week that her government will bring the final Brexit deal to the House of Commons for approval.
