Supreme Court judges will rule early next week on whether British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to suspend parliament in the run-up to Brexit was lawful, the court's president said yesterday. "We know that this case must be resolved as quickly as possible, and we hope to be able to publish our decision early next week," judge Brenda Hale said as the third and final day of hearings wrapped up.

Johnson has suspended parliament for five weeks, with MPs only allowed to return on October 14 -- a fortnight before Britain's planned exit from the European Union on October 31. The Conservative leader, who took office in July, insists it was a routine move to allow his government to launch a new legislative programme next month.