Britain's vote to leave the European Union sent new shockwaves through financial markets, with the pound falling despite the country's leaders' attempts to ease the political and economic turmoil it has unleashed.

The prime minister sought to calm fears over the fallout of the referendum and said Parliament should not try to block Britain's departure. A majority of parliamentarians, like him, had argued that Britain should stay in the EU.

"I am clear, and the Cabinet agreed this morning, that the decision must be accepted," Cameron told Parliament, which also faces a public petition for a new referendum.

But his refusal to start formal moves immediately to pull the country out of the EU has prompted many European leaders to demand quicker action by Britain, the EU's second largest economy after Germany, to leave the 28-country bloc.

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