A constitutional outrage”, declared the Speaker, John Bercow; “a very British coup”, said the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell. Not to be outdone, Nicola Sturgeon added “the day any semblance of British democracy died”. Some have compared the situation to 1628, when Charles I prorogued parliament before dispensing with its services entirely. But Charles I was not, unless the history books are grievously mistaken, faced with the problem of implementing the outcome of a referendum. It is time perhaps to tone down the rhetoric and consider the facts. The five-week prorogation appears longer than it is because it includes the three weeks of the party conference season, when parliament does not normally sit. Parliament therefore loses two weeks. In 2014 there was a longer prorogation of 20 days, though that included the period of the European parliament elections and the Whitsun recess. But of course the objection to prorogation has less to do with the time lost than its alleged pu...