As trailed on Coffee House yesterday, MPs in favour of an EU referendum met today to discuss how to advance James Wharton’s private member’s bill and how to pressure Labour and the Lib Dems to change their stance on the issue. I hear colleagues from all parties agreed with Wharton’s warning that amendments in the Commons could endanger the Bill, while the Stockton South MP also suggested that though trouble looms in the Lords, any attempts to wreck the legislation there could provide a nice opportunity for a debate about the legitimacy of the Upper Chamber turning down legislation sent up from the Commons.
As with gay marriage, dark mutterings about what could happen to this Bill once it reaches the Lords could prove unfounded. The Upper Chamber’s focus is more often on self-preservation, and to reject this Bill could be seen as doubly anti-democratic as not only would they be rejecting Commons legislation, but they would also be preventing the British people from being given a vote on an issue.
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