Tens of thousands of people are marching through central
London in protest against Britain leaving the European Union.
Marchers flying EU flags and holding banners with slogans
including “never going to give EU up” and “march for Europe” gathered in reaction
to a referendum result that has plunged Britain into political chaos.
Though the UK voted narrowly by 52 per cent to 48 per cent
to Leave the EU, the capital, where the protest took place, strongly voted to
Remain – but is set to be dragged out of the bloc by the rest of the country.
Some of the crowd, many of whom were young adults, draped
themselves in European flags while others painted their faces blue with yellow
stars.
Marchers gathered at Park Lane at 11am and marched towards
Parliament Square, via Picadilly, Trafalgar Square and Whitehall.
The protesters chanted “What do we want?"
"EU!" as they set off for Westminster political district, with others
singing "Hey EU" to the tune of The Beatles' "Hey Jude".
Many banners featured Tory Cabinet minister Michael Gove,
who is standing for the Conservative leadership after having campaign for
Brexit.
Others highlighted generational divides between Leave and
Remain voters, with young people flying a "My generation will remain"
banner and other placards suggesting "Our future has been stolen".
Organisers said 50,000 people have turned out to the
protest, while the Metropolitan Police estimated closer to 30,000 people. The
closing rally at Parliament Square was completely full by 2.30pm, with reports
of more protesters being unable to enter the square because it was at capacity.
From the stage set up in Parliament Square, Labour peer
Michael Cashman told the crowd: "No more lies, no more hate. We need to
uphold the values of democracy and inclusiveness which are at the heart of the
EU and this country.
"We must not let right-wing, narrow-minded nationalism
nor xenophobia define us. We are better than that. I honestly believe the
disinformation in this campaign has undermined our democracy. Decent British
values are also the values of the European Union."
"You cannot deny geography. The UK is in Europe. How
can you take it out?" he said.
A similar rally earlier this week in Trafalgar Square was
cancelled due to heavy rain – but tens of thousands of people turned up to
anyway.
Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum
last week after a long campaign fraught with ill feeling on both sides..
Support in urban areas and among young people was
significantly lower, however. The capital strongly backed Remain by 60 per cent
to 40 per cent.
The disparity between different parts of the country has
promoted a four million signature petition calling for a second referendum and
even a renewed push for Scotland to cede from the UK.
The event’s organiser, King’s College graduate Kieran
MacDermott, wrote on the event's Facebook page: “We can prevent Brexit by
refusing to accept the referendum as the final say and take our finger off the
self-destruct button.
“It is the responsibility of parliament to consider our
democracy more carefully and call for a vote before they all accept the UK's
decline.
Despite the vote Britain will not immediately leave the
European Union – with widespread disagreement among policymakers about how
Brexit should happen.
Ukip leader Nigel Farage has said Article 50 should be
invoked as quickly as possible, while former Mayor of London, who also backed
Leave, has said there should be no "haste".
There is also disagreement, even amongst Leave campaigners,
about what form Brexit should take. Whether Britain should remain in the
European single market or control immigration is currently a matter of debate
and was not settled at the binary referendum.
There have also been sportadic calls from some politicians
and campaigners for a second referendum to confirm any deal.
European Union officials and the leaders of other EU nations
have called for Britain to move as quickly as possible towards a solution in
order to minimise what is expected to be an economically difficult period of
transition.
-The Independent-
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