Britain won’t start EU divorce this year

Britain will not begin its formal divorce from the EU this year, a government lawyer said on Tuesday at the start of the first legal action prompted by June 23 referendum vote to exit the bloc.

At least seven lawsuits have been brought to force the government to accept that only Parliament has the authority to decide whether Britain should trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the formal exit process, rather than the Prime Minister.

Newly-appointed Prime Minister Theresa May has vowed to press ahead with so-called Brexit but has previously indicated that Article 50, which starts a two-year countdown to leaving the bloc, should not be invoked before 2017.

Some European leaders have urged Britain to get on with the exit process, but in the first official confirmation that it would not be started this year, government lawyer Jason Coppel told London high court: “The current position is that notification will not occur before the end of 2016.”

Britons voted by 52-48 per cent on June 23 to leave the EU but the legal action over whether the government can begin divorce proceedings without approval from Parliament is one of a number of challenges that could delay Brexit.

Last week, more than 1,000 prominent British lawyers wrote to then-Prime Minister David Cameron to say legislators in Parliament should decide whether Britain leaves the European Union because the Brexit vote was not binding.

Some “Leave” campaigners say there is a concerted attempt by the pro-EU British elite to prevent departure from the bloc by entangling the process in political and legal challenges. While the majority of lawmakers backed staying in the EU, most have since said they respect the verdict of the public.

Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has also said Scotland’s Parliam-ent would consider blocking an exit as Scots backed staying in the EU. Consent is required from the parliaments of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, according to a report by the House of Lords.