– Deep divisions –
Britons cast aside warnings of isolation and economic disaster to vote 52 percent to 48 percent in favour of quitting the EU in last Thursday’s referendum.
The vote wiped $2.1 trillion from global equity markets Friday, and the pound sank to 30-year lows in early Asian trades on Monday, with traders fearing it will lead to months of uncertainty.
British finance minister Osborne is due to make a statement at 7am (0600 GMT) to steady nerves in the global financial hub.
The historic vote, fought on the battlefronts of the economy and immigration, exposed deep divisions in the country, which were particularly keenly felt in Scotland.
Scotland voted by 62 percent to stay in the EU, and the prospect of being pulled out against their will has renewed support for independence.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said a second independence vote was now “highly likely”, and a meeting of her cabinet on Saturday agreed to start drawing up the necessary legislation.
In London, likely candidates to succeed Cameron, including Brexit campaigner and former London mayor Boris Johnson, began sounding out support over the weekend.
Johnson, a former journalist, used his regular column in the Daily Telegraph Monday to reach out to Remain voters, insisting: “I cannot stress too much that Britain is part of Europe, and always will be.”
But he insisted the sense of crisis was exaggerated.
At home and abroad, the negative consequences are being wildly overdone, and the upside is being ignored,” he wrote.
The referendum decision has also lit a fuse under disgruntled members of the opposition Labour party, which backed the loosing “Remain” campaign, many of whom have been unhappy with Corbyn’s leadership since he took office last September.
Sunday saw a string of resignations among members of the shadow cabinet, but Corbyn issued a defiant statement saying he would not stand down.
“I regret there have been resignations today from my shadow cabinet. But I am not going to betray the trust of those who voted for me,” he said.
A no confidence motion against Corbyn’s leadership is expected to be discussed at a party meeting Monday.
