Any MP who wants a second referendum should resign their seat, says Brexiteer

A hardline Tory MP who quit as a ministerial bag-carrier over Brexit today demanded that any of his colleagues who called for a second referendum resign their seat.

Chris Green, Tory MP for Bolton West who quit as a transport PPS over Theresa May’s Brexit white paper, told the Commons that any MP who wanted a People’s Vote on the prime minister’s final deal should step down and fight a by-election to see if voters agree with them.

Amid increasing calls for a second poll to unscramble the Brexit mess engulfing both main parties Mr Green asked new Brexit secretary Dominic Raab if he agreed with his big idea.

Mr Raab, a fellow Brexiteer, claimed putting any deal to the people would be a “shifting of the democratic goalposts”.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Green said: “My electors in a general election expect the decision to be delivered upon, just as in a referendum for that decision to be delivered upon as well.

Your a pps Chris. It is not relevant and nobody gives a fuck. Apart from me obviously.

— Simon Hart (@Simonhartmp) July 9, 2018

“So would you agree with me, to have a second referendum would undermine the democratic process, and anyone calling in this place for a second referendum should perhaps step down, have a by-election and ask for a second opinion on themselves?”

Mr Raab replied: “You make your point in the usual powerful and eloquent way.

“When the referendum legislation was passed it was agreed by all parties that we would respect the verdict of it, and that was the way we went into the legislation, that was the way it was passed in this House and that’s the way we campaigned.

“It would be a shifting of the democratic goalposts to suggest otherwise and a breach of democratic trust.”

When he resigned earlier this month, Mr Green posted his letter on Twitter and added: “I have handed in my resignation to the PM as PPS. Brexit must mean Brexit.”

This led Simon Hart, Tory MP for Carmarthen West, to reply: “Your [sic] a pps Chris. It is not relevant and nobody gives a f***.”