Key events since the UK voted to leave the European Union

Seven days ago the UK headed to the polls to vote on whether to leave or remain in the European Union.
David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister on Friday following the results of the EU Referendum.David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister on Friday following the results of the EU Referendum.
David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister on Friday following the results of the EU Referendum.

With no idea what the outcome might be, the UK woke up to the news that it had voted Leave - a decision that has sparked political turmoil.

Here are the key events since the vote.

Thursday June 23:

:: 10pm - Polls close. The country waits to learn its fate as counting begins.

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:: Pro-Leave Tories including Boris Johnson and Michael Gove sign a letter to David Cameron urging him to stay on as leader whatever the result of the referendum.

Friday June 24: (timings approximate)

:: 2:00am -The pound falls after the Leave campaign takes an early lead following key wins in Sunderland, Swindon, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Kettering.

:: 4:05am - With more than half the results declared, Ukip leader Nigel Farage says he is "daring to dream" of victory and calls for June 23 to go down in history as "Britain's independence day".

:: 5:30am - First Minister Nicola Sturgeon welcomes Scotland's vote to remain, saying: "The vote here makes clear that the people of Scotland see their future as part of the European Union." She later announces she will "take all possible steps and explore all options to give effect to how people in Scotland voted - in other words, to secure our continuing place in the EU and in the single market in particular".

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:: 6.02am - The Leave campaign officially passes the estimated winning post, with 16,763,272 votes cast. The final count an hour later shows Leave won 51.9% of the total vote to Remain's 48.1%.

:: 8.08am - The FTSE 100 falls more than 7% within minutes of opening.The pound plunges to a 31-year low.

:: 8.23am - The Prime Minister announces he will quit as he appears outside 10 Downing Street, his voice cracking with emotion. Mr Cameron says a new Conservative leader will be in place by October. Boris Johnson and Theresa May are touted as possible new leaders.

:: 10.42am - The first flushes of "Bregret" emerge as a petition calling for a second EU referendum proves so popular that the website crashes.

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:: Mid-afternoon - Senior Labour MP Dame Margaret Hodge tables a no confidence motion in party leader Jeremy Corbyn, while MPs start to call for the leader of the Opposition to quit. Mr Corbyn insists he will carry on "making the case for unity".

:: 6.00pm - "What is the EU?" is revealed as the second top UK Google search on the issue, hours after the vote.

Saturday June 25:

:: Mid-morning - The second EU referendum petition hits the one million mark.

:: Mr Corbyn says he will stand again if a Labour leadership contest is held and vows to fight for his job. He rejects calls for a second referendum.

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:: The UK's European Commissioner Lord Hill announces he will be stepping down.

:: EU leaders heap on pressure for Britain to make a speedy exit. European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker insists it is "not an amicable divorce", before adding sharply that it was never "a tight love affair anyway". German Chancellor Angela Merkel is more patient.

Sunday June 26:

:: Hilary Benn is sacked as shadow foreign secretary in the middle of the night after reports he was planning to spearhead a coup against the Labour leader. It triggers a series of resignations from Mr Corbyn's senior team. By the end of the day, 11 senior MPs have quit. Mr Corbyn insists he will not "betray" the Labour members who elected him in September. Union members back the leader.

:: A Polish Social and Cultural Association in west London is scrawled with offensive graffiti - an incident Scotland Yard treats as a hate crime. It is one of a series of racist attacks since Thursday's vote which include Polish residents being targeted with hateful notes and a Muslim county councillor being told to "leave the UK".

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:: Ms Sturgeon warns she would consider asking Holyrood to block the UK's departure from Europe if MSPs are required to give formal backing for Brexit

:: Nearly 80,000 names are removed from the EU referendum petition after they are found to be fraudulent.

Monday June 27:

:: Chancellor George Osborne makes his first intervention to calm the markets post-Brexit, insisting the UK economy is "about as strong as it could be to confront the challenge our country now faces".

:: The mass exodus of Labour MPs continues, the most high-profile being Angela Eagle. Over the last 24 hours, Mr Corbyn has lost 20 members from his top team and a raft of junior frontbenchers.

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:: The first Cabinet meeting since the Brexit vote is held at 10 Downing Street. It emerges that a "Brexit Unit" will be set up to prepare for negotiating Britain's exit from the EU.

:: A poll shows Scotland would vote for independence if a snap referendum was held.

:: Dublin's Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan appeals for calm after a rush of people attempting to get Irish passports.

:: Mr Corbyn appeals for unity at an evening London rally organised by Momentum, which claims around 10,000 people turned out.

Tuesday June 28:

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:: Mr Cameron bids an emotional farewell to the remaining 27 remaining EU leaders as he participates in his final Brussels summit.

:: Labour MPs overwhelmingly back a no confidence motion in Mr Corbyn, voting by 172 to 40.

:: As the first meeting of Mr Corbyn's newly formed shadow cabinet kicks off, the Labour leader makes a last-minute objection to it being filmed. "Seumas, I'm not sure this is a great idea," he tells his top aide, Seumas Milne.

Wednesday June 29:

:: Mr Cameron and Mr Corbyn go head-to-head for a frosty Prime Minister's Questions. After being asked about child poverty and the referendum result Mr Cameron snaps: "For heaven's sake man, go."

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:: Former Labour leader Ed Miliband adds his voice to calls for Mr Corbyn to resign, calling his position "untenable".

:: The remaining 27 EU states give a stinging rebuff to Mr Cameron over immigration, delivering a "crystal clear" message that if the UK wants access to the single market after Brexit, it will have to accept free movement of EU citizens.

:: Pat Glass and Emma Lewell-Buck resign from their recent shadow cabinet appointments, in a fresh blow to Mr Corbyn.

:: More than 200 Scottish Labour politicians and members sign an open letter calling for Mr Corbyn to stand down. Labour deputy leader Tom Watson says a leadership contest is "inevitable".

Thursday June 30:

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:: Theresa May, Michael Gove, Stephen Crabb, Liam Fox and Andrea Leadsom are confirmed as the official Tory leadership contenders by the chairman of the 1922 Committee, Graham Brady. Boris Johnson shocks the nation at the eleventh hour by saying he will not be running, after Mr Gove makes a last-minute U-turn announcing he will throw his hat into the ring.

:: US President Barack Obama reveals there are "longer-term concerns about global growth" after the UK's vote to leave the EU.