Brexit petition passes 2.5 million as demand for second EU referendum grows

Political experts have expressed doubts that a second vote will take place

Many people are unhappy about the result of the referendum (Jay Shaw Baker/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

More than two and a half million people have signed a petition demanding a second EU referendum after an MP called for Parliament to refuse to ratify Brexit.

Signatories are calling for a new rule to be implemented stipulating that polls on the European Union with a majority under 60 per cent and turnout under 75 per cent must be re-started.

However, no such rule or convention currently exists and political experts have said a second vote would be out of the question.

According to Professor Vernon Bogdanor, a prominent constitutional expert, a second referendum is "highly unlikely".

“I don’t think the EU will wish to bargain any further, they will take this vote as final,” he told The Telegraph.

Another political scientist, Professor John Curtice, said to the Evening Standard: "How many people voted in favour of Leave? Seventeen million. One million is chicken feed by comparison.

"It's no good people signing the petition now, they should have done it before. Even then, these petitions don't always mean a great deal."

But the petition is now likely to be the fastest growing ever and is double the number of people who wanted Jeremy Clarkson reinstated on BBC TV programme Top Gear.

Many people, including David Lammy MP, have quoted Nigel Farage's statement in which he said a close result would be grounds for a second referendum.

In May, Mr Farage had said: "In a 52-48 referendum this would be unfinished business by a long way. If the remain campaign win two-thirds to one-third that ends it."

However, Ukip have rejected the current result as grounds for another plebiscite. A party source told the Mirror: “Our feeling is that the status quo often gets a boost and this is the new status quo.

“You’re right, 48-52 is close, however the PM’s gone, the Chancellor’s got to follow, the whole Project Fear campaign is in disarray and I’m sure Bob Geldof is crying into his f***ing cornflakes.

“I know there’s an online petition to have another referendum but I think honestly I think if people want to go for it a little further down the line it would be a hiding for nothing.

“We feel that with this being the new status quo 48-52 might very soon turn into a larger figure.”

It would be theoretically possible to for the government to call a second referendum but very unlikely in reality as those poised to take charge backed the Leave campaign.

Brexit cannot actually take place until Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty has been invoked by the government.