Speaking to BBC Radio today (28 June), Osborne said: “We are in a prolonged period of economic adjustment in the UK”.
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“Before setting the clock ticking, we need to negotiate a deal and put it to the British people, either in a referendum or through the Conservative manifesto at a fresh election”, Hunt said in an interview on ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
Writing in The Times newspaper on Tuesday, Osborne said he was not the right person to lead the party because of his support for the “Remain” vote.
He has called for a second referendum to agree to the terms of leaving the European Union, and only then would he ant to trigger Article 50, that allows a country to leave the EU.
Osborne on Monday said Britain’s vote to leave the European Union was likely to lead to further volatility in financial markets but said the world’s fifth-biggest economy would cope with the challenge ahead.
Amid signs the uncertainty was hitting business confidence, a leading business group said 20 percent of its members planned to move some of their operations out of the U.K. The Institute of Directors said a survey of its 1,000 members showed three out of four believe Britain’s exit from the European Union will be bad for business.
The pound had plunged to its lowest level in 30 years on Friday and fell another 1.7 percent against the US dollar on Monday, to $1.3430.
Mr Osborne did however rule out a punitive Emergency Budget in the short-term, despite previously warning that immediate changes would be necessary should the United Kingdom vote out. Asked if he and Prime Minister David Cameron regret holding the referendum, Osborne said he certainly “regrets the outcome”. “I believed in this cause and fought hard for it”, Osborne said.
Cameron is expected to chair an emergency Cabinet meeting Monday.
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He rejected claims he had been too harsh with warnings about the potential implications of Brexit, adding: “I would say that the concerns those like myself, who argued passionately and full throttled articulated, have been started to be borne out by events”. The decision also spells uncertainty for businesses and citizens across Britain and the EU.
