Yorkshire flag flown high at London People's Vote march

Nearly a thousand arrived in 17 chartered coaches from Leeds, Sheffield, Bradford, Hull, York, Harrogate, Huddersfield and Barnsley, with more travelling independently.

Yorkshire protesters gathered en masse for the start of the march and arrays of blue and white Yorkshire flags were visible across the length of the march, which stretched through the capital ending in Parliament Square.

Many gathered to watch a performance by the Yorkshire Remain Voice Choir and brass band, next to the Duke of York column, two thirds of the way along the march route.

Louise Houghton, Chair of South and West Yorkshire for Europe, one of 17 pro-EU groups affiliated to Yorkshire for Europe, said: “Our voices were heard by our MPs sitting in the House of Commons. They refused to let Johnson bully them into voting without first scrutinising the detail of his disastrous deal. Now they need to put the decision back to the people - it’s the only way to end this nightmare.”

Martin Brooks, Chair of York for Europe, said “The will of the million people on this march along with the majority in the country as whole is now to Remain in the EU - this is shown in poll after poll recently taken.

“The country won’t stand by while the unelected PM and his government rely on an outdated view of the will of the people because it fulfils Johnson’s personal ambitions or the damaging ideology of the hard present government.”

Richard Sadler, Chair of North Yorkshire for Europe added: “Everywhere we went on the march people were commenting on the number of Yorkshire flags visible.

“We were determined to show that, with opinion polls nationwide now consistently showing a majority for Remain, the UK region with the most distinct regional identity in England is at the very forefront of the Remain movement.”

A spokesman for Bradford for Europe, Geoff Ferguson, said: “It was a long day for those of us who travelled to London by coach, but we felt we had no choice. Brexit is the biggest and most important political decision of our time. It is essential that we get it right.

“The protest was loud and very visible from within Parliament, on a day when every vote was crucial.

“The Government’s proposed Brexit deal is nothing like what was promised. Parliament is hopelessly divided. Only the people can resolve this mess and we demand a confirmatory vote on any Brexit deal.”