What would happen if a second Brexit referendum delivered another Leave vote?

Analysis: Amid so much political confusion a second referendum would help clarify what voters want to happen, whatever its outcome, as Ben Kentish explains

A second referendum could prove definitive (Angela Christofilou/The Independent)

The crushing defeat that MPs inflicted on Theresa May‘s Brexit deal this week prompted renewed calls for the public to be given the opportunity to help break the deadlock in parliament.

Supporters of a fresh Brexit referendum insist it is the best way of resolving how Britain leaves the EU – or indeed whether it should do so at all.

Some Independent readers have asked what would happen if a second referendum delivered another Leave vote. How would that solve anything? Would it not require a fresh set of negotiations with the EU, therefore taking Britain back to square one?