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Mr Maloney, referendums are a national matter and it is for individual countries to decide whether to hold them and what conclusions to draw from the result. I don't accept that countries are obliged to vote again; Greenland certainly didn't after its referendum to leave the EEC in the 1980s.

It may be that a country faced with a narrow result on a particular treaty issue decides that the answer is not to commence exit proceedings, but to check again with the public after having obtained concessions on key issues of concern from the EU. This is not a "ratchet" effect but pragmatic politics.

In any event, ultimate sovereignty remains in the hands of the states themselves: the exit procedure in article 50 can be activated at any time and for any reason. There is not even an obligation for the exiting state to reach an agreement with the EU; it just falls out after two years.