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@afneil No, the government leaflet does not accurately define what parliaments agreed to, Andrew. Here is Bernard Jenkin explaining what parliament had agreed to back in 2015. 
@afneil And "Implementing the result" in 1975 meant putting the bill before parliament.
@afneil The result of which was debated before the referendum, and it was made very clear that the government could bind itself but it could not bind the house.
@afneil And while the Labour party kept saying they were bound, it was pointed out that....no they weren't. (Because that's not how it works)
@afneil "It cannot be binding on individual members of the house"
@afneil Even if we have an 81 per cent, vote one way and the house will decide irrespective.
@afneil The result of the referendum, however high the turn out, cannot bind the house in a meaningful way.
@afneil If you are saying that parliament is bound, they are destroying the strongest argument that anti-marketeers are not pursuing - namely the loss of sovereignty.
@afneil It would be disastrous if the house gave the impression that a certain percentage vote in the referendum could bind individual members.
@afneil And on the basis that the government instructed parliament that thresholds were not necessary because it was advisory, it had better damn well be advisory, because those were the conditions that were put to the house.
@afneil Even the house of lords.
Anything else would be the executive exercising powers they did not ask for, and writing a leaflet to the people saying what they are going to do does not give the executive power to bypass parliament.
It's that simple.
Anything else would be the executive exercising powers they did not ask for, and writing a leaflet to the people saying what they are going to do does not give the executive power to bypass parliament.
It's that simple.
@afneil And let's not forget the guide to the referendum from the government in the month before the vote.
"Notification would be a political decision. Legally, the referendum is not binding, although it would probably be considered politically binding. "
"Notification would be a political decision. Legally, the referendum is not binding, although it would probably be considered politically binding. "
@afneil Which, being much later than your leaflet either supersedes it, or your interpretation of the leaflet is wrong.
Your choice.
Your choice.
