EU REFERENDUM BILL

KEY MEASURES

• To provide for a referendum to determine whether the UK should ratify the EU Constitutional Treaty.
• To allow the UK to give effect to the Treaty (through amendment to the 1972 European Communities Act) provided that there is a majority yes vote in the referendum. 

TERRITORIAL EXTENT

The Bill applies to the whole of the UK but not to the Crown Dependencies. The provisions relating to referendum extend to Gibraltar.

COMMENTS

Any queries should be addressed to: ministereurope@fco.gov.uk

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The Bill was introduced to the previous Parliament on 25 January 2005 and Second Reading took place on 9 February. 

The Bill was lost with the dissolution of Parliament for the general election. The Government produced a White Paper (Cm 6309) on its view on the provisional text of the Treaty in September 2004, the Treaty itself (Cm 6429) in December 2004 and a Commentary on the Treaty (Cm 6459).