Council Leader Sends 'Warm Message of Friendship' to Borough's EU Citizens
'We are deeply grateful they have chosen to live with us in our corner of West London'
Hammersmith and Fulham Council Leader, Cllr Stephen Cowan has sent a "warm message of friendship" to EU citizens living in the borough, following the result of yesterday's referendum, which saw 51.9% of the UK population voting to leave the European Union.
He says: " The result is a shock to many and so on this particular day, this administration wants to send a very clear and very warm message of welcome to the thousands of EU citizens that have made our borough their home.
" We are deeply grateful for the businesses they’ve started, the hard work they do, and for how our culture has been enriched because they have chosen to live with us in our beautiful corner of West London.
" We will do everything we can to ensure all of the borough’s EU residents feel as welcome today, and each day thereafter, as they did yesterday.
" What happens next for our country and its relationships with other countries is unclear. The turmoil on the financial markets reflects some of that. But we in H&F will continue to work hard to support local businesses and do everything in our power to fight for the prosperity and well-being of all who live here."
In contrast to the national vote, residents of Hammersmith and Fulham voted strongly to remain in the European Union in the historic referendum.The result in our borough was as follows:
| The total number of ballot papers counted was | 80,347 |
| The total number of votes cast in favour of REMAIN was | 56,188 |
| The total number of votes cast in favour of LEAVE was | 24,054 |
This means that 70.02% voted to Remain while 29.8% voted to Leave.
London as a whole also voted to Remain, with 2.2million votes across 28 boroughs. The other five boroughs were taken by Leave, who secured 1.5million votes in the capital.
However, turnout was around two per cent lower in the capital than the rest of the UK - in part due to torrential rain and transport problems in the south-east on polling day.
June 24, 2016
