David Cameron has quit as Prime Minister after the UK voted to leave the EU.

The Prime Minister said that the will of the British people had to be respected and the country needed 'fresh leadership'.

Read more: Prime Minister David Cameron's resignation speech in full

He refused to set out a timetable for his departure but said that he thought his successor should be in place by October.

Read more: JK Rowling - Scotland will see independence after Brexit

He said: "The will of the British people is an instruction that must be delivered."

His voice broke as he added: "I love this country and I feel honoured to have served it and I will do everything I can in future to help this great country succeed."

A source inside No 10 described the mood there after the resignation announcement as “tearful”.

The UK voted 51.9 per cent to 48.1 per cent to leave the EU.

The Brexit result is a humiliation for Mr Cameron who campaigned heavily for a Remain vote.

Read more: Britain votes to leave European Union despite Scotland wanting to Remain

He emerged to face the world's media as the markets reacted disastrously to the Brexit vote.

Overnight the global oil price fell 6 per cent while the value of the pound fell to its lowest level in three decades.

Scotland voted by a large majority to stay in the EU.

But both England and Wales voted to leave while the result in Northern Ireland was closer than expected.

Read more: Alex Salmond raises prospect of new independence vote after UK Brexit split

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said: “This self-inflicted wound (of Brexit) .. will be his legacy.”

A source described the mood inside No 10 after Mr Cameron's announcement as "tearful".