The prime minister’s flailing Brexit threats have bumped up against the simple need for scrutiny

There he goes again. Faced with parliamentary resistance to his blatant attempt to bounce MPs into approving his Brexit deal, virtually sight unseen, the prime minister threatens to speak to 27 heads of government in the EU, in an open attempt to subvert the law that required him to seek an Article 50 extension.

Perhaps, as has been hinted before, he may in due course threaten a general election. In the past he has threatened a no-deal Brexit if he does not get his way, and he has hinted at that again. He has “paused” his bill – so he is now taking his ball home if he’s not allowed to win the game. These are the standard tactics of the bully, and unworthy of the office he holds. Nor will the ploy work.

No-deal Brexit has been outlawed, a formal application to extend Article 50 has been made, the EU negotiates via Michel Barnier, not individual member states, the opposition will not give him an early election. These are the facts.

Boris Johnson seems to want to inhabit a fantasy world where he is king, where he has already won the landslide majority he dreams of, and where the House of Commons is reduced to a talking shop.

That would certainly be a more amenable spot than the muddy ditch in which he now finds himself stuck, if not politically dead. But he is where he is, and it is his own fault. It was simple impetuousness that drove his demand to have the Commons examine such major complex legislation in three days flat – far too little time.

Mr Johnson’s bill might have much in common with Theresa May’s, but the crucial Northern Ireland protocol is all-new, as are (weak) clauses relating to protecting employment rights.

Moreover, likely amendments would change its nature still more radically. They may or may not “wreck” the bill, but MPs and the speaker are entitled to the time needed to determine that and to discuss and vote on them.

It is only unacceptable to Mr Johnson because of his own foolish and unrealistic pledges during his Tory leadership campaign. They are entirely self-ordained and self inflicted, in fact, in a world where the EU is minded to grant an extension. It puts unnecessary pressure on parliament. A rushed timetable would mean poor oversight and bad law, and this act matters more than most.

Previous EU treaties, such as Nice, Rome and Maastricht took many weeks. This one has its own complications and sensitivities, even if it is shorter and parts have been published before. It will lack legitimacy if it is railroaded through. That too is a manifest fact.

Like dealing with a toddler in a tantrum, EU leaders and MPs should let Mr Johnson bawl as much as he likes, and insist on MPs getting on with their job. The Commons will scrutinise the bill and expose its shortcomings. They will show parts of it are unworkable, or unacceptable, such as the Northern Ireland plan. They will expose dangers, such as the trap door to a no-deal Brexit at the end of the transition in 2020 or 2021.

“Lexiteer” Labour rebels such as Caroline Flint and Lisa Nandy may realise how feeble the worker protections promised by Mr Johnson really are – and how little they can trust him. They will also suggest ways to make the bill actually pass and become law, such as making it contingent on a Final Say referendum.

Parliament represents the views of the whole nation, not just Leavers. It should not be impeded from doing its job. It has taken back control, whether ministers like it or not. We are not leaving on 31 October – unless Mr Johnson agrees to a second referendum. There is the one public vote he can have immediately, and the only way to make his deal law.