Our right to call a referendum We the people of Britain currently do NOT have the right to call a referendum on an important matter of public concern. A referendum may be organised by the government but the result is not legally binding, only advisory. Many people have expressed discontent with the way democracy works and there are different opinions as to what should be done to improve it. In Britain, some recent reform of the House of Lords has occurred. The system for electing members of parliament has long been under review. The reform proposed here is to establish the right of citizens to introduce their own proposals or laws to be put to binding referendum and the right of the electorate to veto laws passing through parliament. With the \"indirect\" citizens\' initiative a law proposal is put before parliament and if rejected can go to referendum. An agreed number of supporting signatures must be collected to start these procedures. This type of \"direct democracy\", side by side with \"representative democracy\", is already well tried in Switzerland, many states of the USA and elsewhere. Further information may be obtained from Citizens\' Initiative and Referendum I&R In the referendum below, you are asked to show your support for the introduction of citizens\' direct democracy in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. (Please select \"United Kingdom\" from the list of countries below. Only votes of citizens and residents of Britain and N. Ireland may be counted in this ballot.) Referendum for the RIGHT to referendum: We citizens of Britain and N. Ireland shall have the right to call a binding referendum on important public issues by collecting a previously agreed number of signatures and the right to put forward a proposal by citizens\' initiative.

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