However, the narrow win masked regional discrepancies which saw majorities in favour of remaining in the EU among voters in Scotland, Northern Ireland and London.

Many of those signing the petition demanding a referendum re-run come from major cities.

However, it emerged on Sunday that parliamentary authorities had removed around 77,000 allegedly fake signatures from the petition - with hackers taking responsibility for adding thousands of counterfeit names.

Signatories were recorded in places as far flung as North Korea, the Falklands, Bermuda, China and Venezuela, and there have been suggestions computer coders may have used special scripts to generate fake signatures automatically.

On Tuesday, a pro-EU rally held outside the Houses of Parliament and in Trafalgar Square attracted hundreds of supporters with banners.