As Britain’s scheduled exit draws closer, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has added his voice to those calling for voters to be given a second chance  to remain members of the European Union.

Britain is due to turn its back on the Continent on March 29.

But with Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit plans still not accepted, some MPs, as well as union and business leaders, are increasingly arguing for people to have a second and final say on any deal with Brussels.

Supporters have branded their proposal a “People’s Vote”, saying it is needed because the original referendum endorsed leaving but did not spell out the terms and costs of a cross-Channel divorce.

Ms May has repeatedly ruled out holding a second referendum, saying it is up to members of parliament alone to decide if a final deal is acceptable.

The intervention in favour of a second referendum from Khan, a senior member of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, will put more pressure on Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to also support the second referendum idea.

Labour is due to start its four-day annual party conference in a week’s time and the issue is sure to loom large on the agenda.

Writing in Sunday’s Observer newspaper, Khan blamed the government’s handling of the negotiations and said the threat to living standards, the economy and jobs was too great for voters not to have a say.

“This means a public vote on any Brexit deal obtained by the government, or a vote on a ‘no-deal’ Brexit if one is not secured, alongside the option of staying in the EU,” he wrote in the newspaper.

-with AAP