Britain votes to Leave

With all results in, Leave has 52% of the referendum vote, to Remain's 48%.
The official count was announced at Manchester Town Hall this morning. The turnout was a record 72.2%.

Of the 33.5million votes cast, 17,410,742 were for Leave, and 16,141,241 for remain.

The result raises concerns for British expats living in France over their futures. In the short-term, there is no reason for expats in France to fear changes to their lifestyles and rights, since Britain is not expected to leave the EU for at least two years – the period established by the Treaty of Lisbon for negotiating a leaving ‘deal’ between the UK and the EU.

This timeframe could be stretched out if the other states agree to an extension. Euro­pean Council president Donald Tusk has spoken of a possible five more years of uncertainty as individual nations’ parliaments debate and agree the deal.

The chairman of the British Community Committee of France, Christopher Chantrey, told Connexion: “The ‘Leave’ result marks the beginning of years of uncertainty and turmoil - not only for the UK itself, but for the other EU member states, including France, and for British people who live there.

“It could be made worse if the Leave campaigners decide to oust David Cameron, which would mean a messy leadership election in a divided Conservative party, followed by a possible forced general election and continuing factional in-fighting among MPs of all stripes.”