Tony Blair has told Remain voters “we’re the insurgents now” and urged them to persuade Brexit supporters that the country is better off staying in the European Union.

The former British prime minister, pictured, said the will of the people should be respected but said Remain voters “have to believe in the people’s innate sense, that they’re also open to a better argument in the light of the facts as they come to light”.

He said Remain voters should mobilize and organize to “prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit” and that, as the “catastrophic” realities of leaving take hold, staying in must remain an option.