Re: Leavers and Remainers, A Call For Unity?
Originally Posted by
Ray Cathode
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Came across this, it amused me
There was nothing in the EU Referendum Act that made the result legally binding
The European Union Referendum Act 2015 – the law that allowed the referendum to take place – didn’t specify what would happen in the event of a vote to leave.
We know that because it didn’t contain any explicit statement to make clear that the result would be legally binding.
The House of Lords Constitution Committee explained in a 2010 report why that’s the case. It said “because of the sovereignty of Parliament, referendums cannot be legally binding in the UK, and are therefore advisory”.
In other words, unless Parliament actively agrees to bind itself to the result of a future referendum, it is not legally obliged to enact the outcome.
In fact, the government recognised the need to make these things explicit in 2011, when Parliament passed the legislation to allow for a referendum on electoral reform. Section 8 of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 makes very clear that the government would have to enact a new voting system in the event of a “yes” vote.
There was no such provision in the EU Referendum Act, which in legal terms means that the result was not binding.
Additionally the Supreme Court determined that the triggering of Article 50 required an act of Parliament confirming that Parliament is indeed sovereign
Facts not fake news beloved of hardcore Brexiteers
Perhaps admitting the truth would be a start towards fostering goodwill