'More than 700,000 protesters' and celebrities join second largest protest in UK this century
Sadiq Khan says another referendum is needed because young people's 'future is on the line'
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An estimated 700,000 people gathered in central London to call for a second referendum on a final Brexit deal.
MPs from across the political spectrum and a slew of famous names took part in the People’s Vote march, sponsored by The Independent as part of its Final Say campaign.
Some 1,000 young activists led the so-called “march for the future” from Park Lane towards a rally in Parliament Square.
There, demonstrators from across the UK heard speeches from household names including television presenter Delia Smith and London mayor Sadiq Khan.
“We were the few, and now we are the many,” Conservative MP Anna Soubry told the crowds at the largest protest in the UK since the 2003 demonstrations over the Iraq war.
“We are winning the argument and we are winning the argument most importantly against those who voted Leave,” she added.
Christian Broughton, editor of The Independent, told marchers: “Theresa May says that the Final Say referendum will be a politicians’ vote, not a people’s vote, but we can all remember what some politicians told us in 2016.
“We, the people, can all now see what’s really coming. And from where I’m standing it looks like a people’s vote to me.”
Nearly 950,000 people have signed The Independent‘s petition urging Theresa May to call a referendum on the final Brexit deal.
Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston said calls for a People’s Vote could ”no longer be ignored” and urged Labour Jeremy Corbyn to back the campaign.
“If we had the whole of the Labour Party, as well as the SNP, the Liberal Demcorats, and obviously a very significant number of my colleagues, we would get it past it,” she said. “We need him to come behind it.”
London mayor Sadiq Khan, Green Party MP Caroline Lucas, Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable, and Labour MP Chuka Umunna all addressed the crowd at the march.
In a video message, Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland, said: “Let me say this loudly and clearly, if the issue comes before the House of Commons, SNP MPs will support a People’s Vote which includes the option to remain in the EU.”
Read how we covered the march live below.
Please allow a moment for the live blog to load
Brexit must not be allowed to undermine workers' rights, says Jeremy Corbyn
As crowds rallied in London to demand a vote on the EU referendum, Jeremy Corbyn told United Nations chiefs in Geneva Brexit must not be allowed to undermine workers' rights.
The Labour leader said he would work with other countries to "resist" attempts to reduce protections for UK staff.
Mr Corbyn was in the Swiss city to meet Michelle Bachelet, UN high commissioner for human rights, and Guy Ryder, director-general of the International Labour Organisation.
He said: "Britain is leaving the EU, but we must and will work together with those in other countries to resist the pressure to undermine rights and protections at work.
"Tax dodging, speculation and unaccountable corporate power have created economic inequality on a vast scale and sucked wealth and jobs out of community after community.
"Average pay in Britain is now lower than a decade ago and workers have faced a concerted attack on their rights under this Tory Government.
"We are determined to secure stronger rights at work and fair rules for business as we leave the EU as part of a new economic settlement which delivers for the many, not the few."
PA
Actor Andy Serkis is marching alongside thousands in central London, with his 14-year-old son Louis and wife Lorraine Ashbourne.
The Lord Of The Rings actor said he is supporting the protest as he believes there should be a second referendum “now that people are more informed”.
The 54-year-old said: “The will of the people doesn't have to stand still, it's not an immovable thing that is fixed.
“The will of the people is now, it's people expressing their points of view in a more informed state.”
Mr Serkis also expressed concern for the film industry if the UK were to leave the EU.
He said: “There's free movement between the European countries and we've attracted a lot of industry here as a result and that could be seriously damaged, which is the same for a lot of industries.”
PA
Organisers have increased their estimate of the turnout in London to 670,000, more than six times the number they anticipated. The Metropolitan Police have not yet released their estimate of the numbers attending.
The Independent's editor Christian Broughton has addressed the crowd gathered in Parliament Square. He said:
Theresa May says that the Final Say referendum will be a politicians' vote, not a people's vote, but we can all remember what some politicians told us in 2016.
We, the people, can all now see what's really coming. And from where I'm standing it looks like a People's Vote to me.
When we started the Final Say campaign in July, our politics team hoped we might get as many as 20,000 signatures on our change.org petition.
Well, this morning I checked: we had 940,000 signatures. And I'm pretty sure that by the end of today there'll be a few more.
We have to keep on showing up and signing up.
Only The Independent could start this campaign because it's not tied to any political party. We trust our readers, we trust our reporters and we tell it honestly as it is.
Mr Broughton then introduced politicians from across the political spectrum, including Caroline Lucas, Chuka Umunna, and Vince Cable.
You can watch The Independent editor Christian Broughton's speech here:
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas described the huge crowd was a "beautiful sight".
She told those gathered:
What a movement we have become.
The Green Party is proud to be part of this amazing movement for a People's Vote, because we know that democracy didn't end on the 23rd June 2016.
That referendum wasn't the end of the story; it was the start of something new.
She said Brexit "would make our poorest communities even poorer and more powerless".
"We must have that People's Vote, but we must also re-programme an economy that fails so many, that is based on such inequality, that condemns us to climate breakdown."
Labour MP Chuka Umunna, whose Lambeth constituency had the highest percentage of Remain voters in England, hit out at arch Brexiteers who "have tried to smear us as some liberal metropolitan elite, when nothing could be further from the truth".
He told the crowd:
Right from the start of this debate they tried to set different parts of our United Kingdom against each other; they wanted to divide this country. And the truth is, whether you are from a Remain or Leave area, the problems are the same.
Whether you are from Liverpool, Lincoln, Llanduno, Livingston in Scotland or Lambeth, where I am, Brexit is not going to make those problems better, it is going to make them worse.
The deal on the table is nowhere near as good as the deal we've got now.
Organisers have increased their estimate of marcher numbers to 700,000. It is the the largest demonstration in the UK since the 2003 protest over the Iraq war.
Conservative MP Anna Soubry told the thousands gathered in Parliament Square that "it is clear we are the many".
Addressing the cheering crowd, she added: "We are winning the argument, most importantly against those who voted leave.
"We will take responsibly and sort out this mess."
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