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UK set to leave European Union after vote in favour of Brexit

UKIP Leader Nigel Farage drives away from the Leave.EU party in London where he appeared to claim victory for the Leave campaign in the EU referendum 
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage drives away from the Leave.EU party in London where he appeared to claim victory for the Leave campaign in the EU referendum  UKIP Leader Nigel Farage drives away from the Leave.EU party in London where he appeared to claim victory for the Leave campaign in the EU referendum 

Nigel Farage has hailed a victory for Leave in the historic EU referendum, declaring "let June 23 go down in our history as our independence day".

The Ukip leader's judgment was endorsed by the major broadcasters, as ITV, the BBC and Sky News all calculated that, with less than 70 voting areas left to declare, Leave had built up an unassailable lead over Remain.

Sterling suffered one of its most precipitous plunges in the overnight markets, hitting lows last seen in 1985 and losing more than 10% against the US dollar, as traders responded with panic to the prospect of the UK quitting the European Union after 43 years.

The shock defeat for David Cameron's strong recommendation of a Remain vote led to questions about his future as Prime Minister.

Labour said he should "seriously consider his position" if Leave won, while Mr Farage said he should quit "immediately".

Addressing jubilant supporters at the Leave.EU headquarters as the sun rose over London, Mr Farage said: "I now dare to dream that the dawn is coming up on an independent United Kingdom."

Britain has freed itself from Brussels "without a shot being fired", said the Ukip leader, adding: "If the predictions now are right, this will be a victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people.

"We fought against the multinationals, we fought against the big merchant banks, we fought against big politics, we fought against lies, corruption and deceit, and today, honesty, decency and belief in nation I think now is going to win."