Any referendum now would be on whether to get out of the EU on clearly specified terms, which is a completely different question from the vote-for-a-slogan on a lying bus back in 2016.

Moreover there are very good reasons to believe that there is now a majority in the public who would be likely to vote for remaining in the EU. Brexiteers brandish the expression "the will of the people" and talk about what happened three and a half years ago. The "will of the people" that deserves respect is the will of the people today. A fresh referendum would show what that is - and that is precisely who Brexiteers are so desperate to avoid having one.