European Union (Amendment) Bill

Not that long—[Laughter.] Well, not as long as some of my colleagues. I am a little confused about the Foreign Secretary’s position. He said that the reason for granting a referendum was that there was a fundamental shift in power. He then went on to say that he did not think that there was a fundamental shift in power from the constitution, and that the reason for granting a referendum was that it would clear the air. Do we have it now that the principle behind granting a referendum is that, whenever the air is not clear, we should clear it by holding a referendum?