• Pro Brexit supporters gather for the Brexit Day celebration party hosted by Leave Means Leave at Parliament Square on Friday. Getty Images
    Pro Brexit supporters gather for the Brexit Day celebration party hosted by Leave Means Leave at Parliament Square on Friday. Getty Images
  • Thousands gathered in Parliament Square to mark Britain's departure from the EU. Reuters
    Thousands gathered in Parliament Square to mark Britain's departure from the EU. Reuters
  • Some Brexit supporters dressed up for the celebrations. Getty Images
    Some Brexit supporters dressed up for the celebrations. Getty Images
  • Crowds counted down the hours and then the minutes until the Brexit hour at 11pm local time. Reuters
    Crowds counted down the hours and then the minutes until the Brexit hour at 11pm local time. Reuters
  • Britain officially left the EU after a debilitating political period that has bitterly divided the nation since the 2016 referendum. AP
    Britain officially left the EU after a debilitating political period that has bitterly divided the nation since the 2016 referendum. AP
  • Britain ended 47 years of EU membership on Friday. AFP
    Britain ended 47 years of EU membership on Friday. AFP
  • Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage speaks to the media before addressing crowds in Parliament Square. Reuters
    Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage speaks to the media before addressing crowds in Parliament Square. Reuters

Brexit

Brexit day live: the latest news as the UK leaves the European Union

The UK brought to an end nearly five decades of EU membership at 11pm on January 31. Follow the developments here

The National

February 02, 2020

  • English
  • Arabic

After three years, seven months, and eight days since the British public voted in the Brexit referendum, the United Kingdom formally left the EU at 11pm GMT on January 31.

The past 1,317 days have seen almost every twist and turn imaginable as a country grappled deep division and political and legal wranglings to reach to this stage.

Thousands of people turned out to mark the occasion in central London as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed "the dawn of a new era".

Follow the latest news and developments below.

Also read: 

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