Boris Johnson's Attorney General today branded the "dead Parliament" a "disgrace" and accused an MP of "betrayal" as he refused to quit over his Supreme Court defeat.
Top QC Geoffrey Cox ramped up vicious 'Parliament v People' rhetoric after MPs raced back to Westminster to hold the government to account.
Mr Cox faced calls to resign after he advised Boris Johnson it would be lawful to shut down Parliament for more than a month before Brexit .
Yesterday the Supreme Court overturned that advice in a brutal ruling that said the shutdown was unlawful and had an "extreme" hit on democracy.
But Mr Cox branded the calls to quit "infantile", "puerile" and "absurd". He told MPs to jeers in the Commons: “If every time I lost a case I was called upon to resign, I would probably never have had a practice.”
He added: "That is an absurd and ridiculous proposition.
"It was advice that was agreed with by the first instance court in Scotland and by the Lord Chief Justice in England.
"Is he calling for his resignation as well? Is he calling for the resignation of the Master of the Rolls? Is he calling for the resignation of the Queen's Bench Division? Is he calling for Lord Doherty's resignation?"
He accused his Labour opposite Nick Thomas-Symonds of a "shameless piece of cynical opportunism".
He added: "It is the most puerile infantile criticism to say about a lawyer whose advice has been upheld by courts right up to the Supreme Court that somehow or other that advice he should be held culpable for.
"This advice was sound advice at the time. The court of last resort ultimately disagreed with it. But in doing so they made new law, as they were entirely entitled to do."
Mr Cox was embroiled in angry scenes with MPs as he unleashed a furious, shouted attack on opposition MPs branding Parliament a “disgrace”.
Many MPs have raised concerns about ‘Parliament versus the people’ rhetoric putting them in danger just years after Jo Cox MP’s murder.
But today Mr Cox yelled loudly in the Commons: ”This Parliament is a disgrace!
“They can vote no confidence at any time but they’re too cowardly.
"This Parliament should have the courage to face the electorate.
“But it won't because so many of them are really about preventing us leaving the EU.
“But the time is coming when even these turkeys won't be able to prevent Christmas!"
Later he told Phillip Lee, a former Tory who defected to the Lib Dems: "He has the nerve to arise and suggest somehow that I should have effected greater humility!
"I think he should be on his knees, to his own constituents, begging their forgiveness for his betrayal!”
His rhetoric angered MPs still scarred by the far-right murder of Jo Cox.
Labour MP Alison McGovern tweeted: " This is beyond a joke. Way beyond. He should remember a family in Batley living with the knowledge every day of what happened to their daughter and sister who chose to serve."
Labour MP Barry Sheerman branded the Attorney General a "disgrace" who had "no shame at at" after "this government cynically manipulated the prorogation to shut down this House".
And he slammed the top lawyer for deciding "to come here with his barrister’s bluster to obfuscate the truth!"
Sacked former Tory Rory Stewart added: “I am horrified that when I asked the Attorney-General to confirm the principle of the sovereignty of Parliament that he appears to have replied - over the shouts of the house - that ‘this Parliament is a disgrace'.
“Our democracy can only be and must remain founded in Parliament.”
The Attorney General did, however, say the government would abide by the Supreme Court's ruling despite disagreeing with it.
And he brutally slapped down Cabinet Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg for branding the ruling a "constitutional coup".
Geoffrey Cox told MPs: "I don't think it was a constitutional coup".
"These things can be said in the heat of rhetorical and poetical licence.
"This was a judgement of the Supreme Court of a kind which was clear and definitive. It often happens that governments lose cases. We don't agree with it because of course we argued against it.
"But we accept the ruling of the Supreme Court and we're proud we have a country capable of giving independent judgments of this kind."
Parliament returned today after Boris Johnson raced back to the UK ahead of a Commons showdown with Jeremy Corbyn.
The PM touched down in London on the RAF Voyager a little over an hour before the Commons was due to reopen at 11.30am.
He had to jet back early from the United Nations in New York after the Supreme Court ruled his suspension of Parliament was "unlawful".
Earlier Jeremy Corbyn called suspension of Parliament "an affront to democracy" during an ultra-rare appearance on the BBC's Today programme - and demanded the Prime Minister apologise.
But Labour's leader, who held a shadow cabinet meeting this morning to decide next steps, opted not to trigger an election until it is certain no-deal Brexit can be blocked.
Meanwhile no-deal Brexit chief Michael Gove refused to say sorry over the Supreme Court judgment.
Parliament was braced for a mammoth day with two urgent questions (prorogation and Jennifer Arcuri) and five statements - Thomas Cook, Brexit readiness, Iran, Boris Johnson, and finally Jacob Rees-Mogg updating the business of the Commons.
The PM was expected to address MPs around 5pm.
