Brexit: 1M march in London for new people's vote

By Muhammad Mussa and Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) - Up to a million people took to the streets of London on Saturday afternoon, demanding a people’s vote on the final deal after London and Brussels agreed to a short extension to the Brexit date.

The demonstration is the largest anti-Brexit protest the country has seen and one of the largest overall, as people from all over the country travelled into London to voice their opposition to Brexit and its handling by the government.

British citizens living in Europe also flew into the capital on Friday to attend the march, demanding a final say on a decision they argue they couldn’t vote on in the 2016 EU referendum.

A large number of MPs and public figures were at the march, including Anna Soubry of the Independent Group, Caroline Lucas, co-leader of the Green Party, Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, and special guest Tom Watson, deputy leader of the Labour party.

“The current impasse is not working for people who voted to leave or people who voted to stay. I really don’t think parliament will be able to resolve this,” Watson said in a statement.

“That’s why I’ve come to the reluctant view that the only way to resolve this and have legitimacy in the eyes of the public is for the people themselves to sign it off.”

The demonstration was organized by a plethora of movements, such as the People’s Vote Campaign, Another Europe is Possible, LabourSay, and Our Future Our Choice, all campaigning for a second referendum on the U.K.’s relationship with the European bloc.

Also at the demonstration was Nicola Sturgeon, the head of the Scottish National Party, who said: “The EU’s decision to postpone things until at least April 12 has opened a window, and those of us who oppose Brexit must seize the chance it offers.”

The procession of Pro-EU campaigners and Remainers began at Hyde Park and marched passed Pall Mall near the Queen’s residence, the prime minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street, and Trafalgar Square, and will end with a rally at Parliament Square, where MPs will address the mass crowds.

More than 4 million people this week signed an online petition calling for Article 50 to be revoked and for Brexit to be cancelled, crashing the petition’s servers several times in the process.