Dominic Grieve And Brexit MEP Go Head To Head On Holding A Second Referendum
5 October 2019, 10:08
Dominic Grieve, an independent MP and prominent proposer of a second referendum, said: "It may well be if there is an extension of Article 50 into the new year it will be followed by a a general election but that general election isn't in my gift, it's in the gift of Jeremy Corbyn."
He added: "The other problem, I think we have to face it, the way the opinion polls are at the moment I rather doubt the general election is going to produce any conclusive outcome with a majority government at all.
So we will find ourselves, if we have one in mid-December, with exactly the same problems and no means of resolving them. That's why my preference is to go back and offer the public the choices that are available."
He continued: "I am not prepared to facilitate a no-deal Brexit that was never put forward as a viable option."
Matthew Patten, a Brexit Party Member of the European Parliament for the East Midlands, responded that David Cameron made it "explicitly clear to the entire population, speaking on television, saying that if we were unable to reach an agreement in terms of leaving Europe after two years, we would leave Europe under WTO terms. which is exactly what the Brexit party is proposing."
He added that a general election is needed as soon as possible.
Grieve responded that the Leavers "repeatedly said we would leave with a deal and never said we would be leaving without one. It's right that David Cameron said that was a risk, I also said it was a risk, the fact is that those promoting leave did not."
He then told Andrew Piece that a second referendum would be "imperfect" but "all solutions are imperfect" so he is still calling for one.
Patten replied that it is "illogical to have a second referendum".
He continued: "We need to deliver on the first referendum, that is what we do and otherwise the logic is that we have another referendum and maybe have another referendum and make it the best of three - it doesn't make any sense at all."
