Petition · past parliament

Ask MP's to discuss voting down the EU referendum (23 June 2016) decision

Rejected 17 signatures

What the petition asks

The result of June 23 referendum on Britain's EU membership is not legally binding. It is merely advisory.

No legal provision was included in the EU referendum legislation that requires UK Parliament to act in accordance with the outcome of the referendum.
A really crucial detail about the EU referendum has gone virtually unmentioned and it is probably the most crucial detail: Parliament doesn't actually have to bring Britain out of the EU if the public votes for it.

That is because the result of the referendum on Britain's EU
membership is not legally binding. Instead, it is merely advisory, and, in theory, could be totally ignored by UK government.

I'm starting this petition to get this debated in parliament

Why it was rejected

There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.

Timeline

24 Jun 2016 Petition opened for signatures
5 Jul 2016 Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 17
Status Rejected
Rejected 5 Jul 2016

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.