Credit: PA/Alastair Grant
Less than two hours after it was confirmed that the UK had voted to leave the EU, David Cameron has announced his resignation.
He's promised to 'steady the ship' in the following months in preparation for his stepping down.
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His voice was cracking as he announced the decision outside 10 Downing Street.
Cameron said the result was 'the will of the British people' which was an 'instruction which must be delivered'.
He said: "I was absolutely clear [in the referendum] about my belief that Britain is stronger, safer and better off inside the European Union. And I made clear the referendum was about this and this alone, not the future of any single politician, including myself.
"But the British people have made a very clear decision to take a different path and as such I think the country requires fresh leadership to take it in this direction.
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"I will do everything I can as prime minister to steady the ship over the coming weeks and months. But I do not think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.
"This is not a decision I have taken lightly. But I do believe it's in the national interest to have a period of stability and then the new leadership required.
"There is no need for a precise timetable today. But in my view we should aim to have a new prime minister in place by the start of the Conservative party conference in October."
BBC forecasts showed that Vote Leave won the referendum by 52% to 48%.
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Provisional figures have shown that there were 46,499,537 eligible voters in this referendum. Turnout was 72%, which is the highest level of turnout in a nationwide ballot in the UK since 1992.
Words by Mel Ramsay
Featured Image Credit:Topics: UK politics, brexit, david cameron, Politics