THE latest legal bid to stop Brexit was dismissed as “hopeless” and “totally without merit” by the High Court yesterday.

Liz Webster raised nearly £190,000 through crowdfunding to bring a case against the Department for Exiting the European Union.

Ms Webster, who stood in Swindon for the Liberal Democrats at the 2017 general election, claimed that no decision to withdraw from the EU has been made, arguing that the Article 50 notification given in March 2017 was invalid.

Hugh Mercer QC said the case was “a public-interest challenge, which aims to ensure simply that the law is applied.”

But Lord Justice Gross said the case was “doomed to fail” on its merits.

He added: “It is difficult to conceive of a challenge more detrimental to the conduct of a major issue of national and international importance, whatever political view is taken of the merits or demerits of Brexit.”