Here is what MPs were told in 2015:
'This Bill requires a referendum to be held on the question of the UK’s continued membership of the European Union (EU) before the end of 2017. It does not contain any requirement for the UK Government to implement the results of the referendum, nor set a time limit by which a
vote to leave the EU should be implemented. Instead, this is a type of referendum known as pre-legislative or consultative, which enables the
electorate to voice an opinion which then influences the Government in its policy decisions.
The referendums held in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in 1997 and 1998 are examples of this type, where opinion was tested before legislation was introduced. The UK does not have constitutional provisions which would require the results of a referendum to be implemented, unlike, for example, the Republic ofIreland, where the circumstances in which a binding referendum should be held are set out in its constitution.
Well the referendum outcome has certainly influenced the Conservative Government to an extra-ordinary degree, emasculating Parliament and taking the outcome as the sole determinant of policy. Thank goodness we finally have the opportunity to express in a GE our approval or disapproval - with parties available throughout the UK available to put the positive aspects of staying in the EU to the electorate