"...by the people" was not a British quote, tho, Jim; it was Abe Lincoln, you will remember. Referenda have only very recently been used here in UK. Previously they were not part of our system: the govt claimed a mandate from their parliamentary majority; and in extreme cases, if defeated in a vote in parliament as with R MacDonald in the 30s, would settle controversies by resigning & "going to the people", ie calling an election. Referenda, aka plebiscites, were traditionally mistrusted as the means by which such continental rulers as Louis-Philippe, Bismarck, et al, would purport to have mandates, which were never regarded here as very trustworthy.

≈M≈