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Acknowledging his opinion on a fresh vote would be unpopular with his left-wing followers, the columnist said he feared right-wingers would exploit any new Brexit vote. Writing on Twitter, he said: “I fear a second EU referendum would be a huge boost for the radical right. “The first gave them a massive boost as it is. A second vote would be framed as an Establishment plot to thwart the first, and would be an even more viciously poisonous campaign.” He suggested the Remain campaign in the run up to the June 2016 Brexit vote was an “embarrassing catastrophe” and that overturning the result would need the “charming and winning” over a “significant chunk” of Leave voters, people who voted remain but are resigned to leaving the EU and supporters of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

I fear a second EU referendum would be a huge boost for the radical right Owen Jones

The left-wing columnist also said he was not convinced a second referendum would not “entrench/expand poisonous divisions”. He said: “Basically - as somebody who voted and campaigned for Remain, and would vote Remain in a hypothetical second referendum - the official Remain campaign was an embarrassing catastrophe, and official continuity Remain is even worse. “The strategy and messaging is just dire.” His comments come after around 100,000 people took to the streets of London at the weekend to demand another Brexit vote. And they drew a furious response from many of his followers. One wrote: “Odious little weasel.”

Protestors take part in a march against Brexit in London

Others wrote tweets full of swear words, forcing Mr Jones to write: “If this is how they talk to someone who campaigned for and voted for Remain, and who doesn’t like Brexit but isn’t convinced it can be reversed, how are they going to persuade Leave voters?” Meanwhile, Downing Street has insisted Theresa May's preferred solution to the Brexit Irish border impasse remains on the table, despite being dismissed by a senior member of her Cabinet as "bureaucratic, unwieldy and impractical". Andrea Leadsom, the Eurosceptic Leader of the Commons, said the "customs partnership" model might lead to more "red tape" for businesses. Her intervention comes as ministers prepare to decide on their preferred option to ensure smooth post-Brexit trade.

Brexit march/Owen Jones

Cabinet ministers have been examining the customs partnership model, along with the "maximum facilitation" system favoured by Brexiteers, for the last few weeks in an attempt to find a solution to one of the main sticking points of the whole Brexit negotiations. Brexiteers such as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson oppose a customs partnership with the EU, which would see the UK collect tariffs set by the EU customs union on goods entering the country on behalf of the bloc. The Gonverment’s "max fac" alternative would, rather than scrapping customs checks, use technology to minimise the need for them. Both systems have been rejected by the EU.