A fresh referendum is the only way

Mr Howbeck (Letters, July 19), is high in emotion and low in facts. His reference to '˜Berlin's Article 50' is ridiculous, emotional and incorrect. Article 50 is the EU's, not Berlin's and an eminent British lawyer, Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, drafted it.

Mr Howbeck objects to freedom of movement as though it was all one way. Freedom of movement is what makes it easy for Britons to study in, work in and retire to any of the other 27 member nations. The threat of Brexit has deprived one of my granddaughters of the opportunity to attend a Dutch university.

UK law is no more subservient to foreign jurisdiction than Californian law is. Some aspects of Californian law are subject to US Federal law and California is represented in the US institutions that create Federal law. Some aspects of UK law are subject to EU law and the UK is represented in the EU institutions that create EU law.

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The proposal for the UK to continue to observe EU trade regulations is to enable the UK to continue to trade easily with the EU. The difference, if we leave, is that we shall no longer have an input into what the regulations say. The solution to that is to remain in the EU, so we can continue to shape its future and help decide what its regulations are.

Leaving the EU was supposed to set us free to negotiate trade deals with major nations outside the EU, such as Japan, but the EU and Japan have just signed an agreement, and we’ll be left out of it if we leave the EU. No-one can seriously imagine that the UK alone could get a better deal than the combined strength of the EU’s 28 members.

The two things, on which Remainers and Brexiters probably agree, are that the Government does not know what it’s doing about Brexit and there’s no clear majority in Parliament for anything to do with Brexit. Therefore, although I don’t like referendums, I have come reluctantly to the conclusion that the only way out of the present constitutional crisis is to have another referendum – a people’s vote – on Brexit, now that the problems are understood better, and one of the options must be to remain in the EU.

Brexiters shouldn’t mind that. If they are right, the public will support them and they’ll win again – perhaps without breaking the law on expenses this time.

Anthony Tuffin, Solent Way, Selsey