BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — On June 23, a nationwide referendum was held in the United Kingdom, in which 51.9 percent of voters supported the country withdrawing from the European Union. After the official results were revealed, UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who had led the Remain campaign, said he would resign in October.
.@EP_President met w/ Dutch PM Mark #Rutte @MinPres. VIDEO extracts arrival & roundtable→ https://t.co/yjFNr8iry4https://t.co/qJDmbMO56Z
— EP Audiovisual (@europarlAV) 5 July 2016
"The EU is a work in progress, and in principle that's fine. But as I have said — Brexit is a signal — and certainly not the only signal — that change is needed. Indeed, it can't be avoided. And I'm certainly not the first person to say so," Rutte said at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, adding that he was "extremely disappointed" by Brexit.
Dutch PM, Mark Rutte, tells the EP chamber the UK has collapsed 'politically, economically, constitutionally'. @MinPres #EPlenary
— Finlay Duncan (@FinlayD) 5 July 2016
The Netherlands presided over the European Council between January 1 and June 30. The European Parliament session was devoted to the outcome of the Dutch presidency, in particular, Brexit, which occurred during that period.
