Tony Blair has urged Britons to change their minds about leaving the European Union, telling Remain supporters to "rise up" and challenge the vote in a speech today.
In his strongest condemnation yet of the Brexit result and subsequent fallout, the former prime minister told Remain supporters to "build support for finding a way out from the present rush over the cliff's edge".
The former PM, speaking to the pro-European group Open Britain, said voters had decided on the referendum "without knowledge of the true terms of Brexit".
He said that as the terms of the UK's withdrawal from the EU become clear, it is the voters' "right to change their mind". He continued: "Our mission is to persuade them to do so."
"This is not the time for retreat, indifference, or despair, but the time to rise up in defence of what we believe," he said.
Blair, PM from 1997 to 2007, claimed those campaigning for an EU exit always wanted a "hard Brexit".
"Indeed even the term 'Hard Brexit' requires amendment. The policy is now 'Brexit at any cost'," he said. "Our challenge is to expose, relentlessly, the actual cost.
"To show how this decision was based on imperfect knowledge, which will now become informed knowledge."
Blair's speech provoked a strong show of support from former deputy PM – and ardent Remain campaigner – Nick Clegg.
I agreed with every single word of that.
However, not all viewed Blair's speech as a success. Many on the left and right questioned the former leader's tone, and asked why he felt he should be speaking up now.
Conservative MP Dominic Raab told Guido Blair "refuses to accept the decision people made last June," and his speech was the "the height of arrogance".
Caroline Lucas says 'Tony Blair's speech is 'staggeringly unhelpful' as he is a ' fully paid up member of the establishment'
Tony Blair's plan for two year campaign to overturn the #Euref is no way forward. Respect the result - fight for best deal.
Labour leadership source says office response to Blair speech is "just a collective shrug"
Here we go..... Labour source: "No wonder we are still trying to recover from Tony Blair's legacy when he has such contempt for democracy."
Blair's speech comes at a fraught time. PM Theresa May has criticised those seeking to block the "will of the people", who voted 52% to leave. May has said she wants to trigger formal talks to leave by the end of March.
Meanwhile, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn controversially said his opposition party will not oppose the Brexit deals negotiated by the government, signaled when a decision to allow the government to trigger Article 50 sailed through the House of Commons last week.