Referendums held in the UK
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A referendum is a method of referring a question or set of questions to the entire electorate directly.
Since 1973 there have been 11 referendums held in the UK, the majority of them have been related to the issue of devolution. The first UK-wide referendum was held in 1975 on the United Kingdom’s continued membership of the European Community (European Union).
EU referendum 2016
A referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union took place on 23 June 2016, when the UK voted to leave the EU. For information about the result and the process for leaving the EU, see the House of Commons Library EU referendum pages via parliament.uk.
Previous referendums in the UK
- 8 March 1973: Northern Ireland – Northern Ireland sovereignty referendum on whether Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom or join the Republic of Ireland (yes to remaining part of the UK)
- 5 June 1975: UK – Membership of the European Community referendum on whether the UK should stay in the Europea...
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