Closed petition Referendums should require a two thirds majority to mandate any change

Closed on 9 February 2017

Without a clear majority referendums can be divisive and lead to uncertain outcomes. Any mandate for a change in a referendum should therefore require the support of at least two thirds of those voting and over 50% of those eligible to vote.

British political parties generally require two thirds of the those voting to approve any constitutional change, as do many democratic nations. This requirement acts a s a safeguard to ensure any change is clearly wanted and does not lead to future instability. A referendum should only be held to deal with important issues which are in themselves likely to have constitutional implications. So it is reasonable to expect any vote for change made via a referendum to be similarly safeguarded.