Second referendum will take over a year, say top civil servants
A SECOND referendum will take well over a year to organise, according to official guidance drawn up by civil servants in the Cabinet Office.
The guidance, leaked to The Daily
Telegraph, was handed to MPS by David Lidington, Theresa May’s effective deputy, at a meeting today during which Liberal Democrat MPS Alistair Carmichael, Jo Swinson and Tom Brake met Mr Lidington and Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary.
The guidance makes clear at least 14 months will be needed to pass legislation through Parliament and hold the second referendum that some campaigners have called for. It includes passage of primary legislation (seven months), Electoral Commission question testing (12 weeks), passage of secondary legislation (six weeks), then campaign design and the actual campaign itself (16 weeks).
Number 10 sources refused to say who drew up the document but admitted ministers had asked for it. The Prime Minister’s deputy official spokesman said the single-page guidance intended to “set out in factual detail the number of months required. This was illustrative only and our position of course is that there will be no second referendum, as the Prime Minister has repeatedly said.”
The estimate exceeds by far other estimates, including one by University College London, which said a second vote could take half that time, 22 weeks.
The Government timeline was questioned by some Remain supporting Tory MPS. Dr Phillip Lee said on Twitter: “Nonsense. It’s high time we dealt in facts. We can hold a referendum much more quickly if the Government commits to this solution.
“People have a right to vote on this and it’s a sign of desperation that the Government is trying to deny them.”
Sir Vince Cable, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: “It would be perfectly possible to organise a second referendum to take place in early May without trampling on constitutional and practical requirements.”
Lord Adonis, an anti-brexit campaigner, said it was “shameful that civil servants are complicit with ministers pretending it will take a year to organise a People’s Vote.”
A spokesman for the Electoral Commission said: “The Government has not provided us with any information about how long it would take to organise a second referendum. We would expect to see any such information so we can provide independent, expert advice. We have recommended that legislation should be in place six months before a referendum to ensure campaigners and electoral administrators have time to prepare. We can’t comment on how long it would take to prepare and get through Parliament. That is a matter for the Government.”