Brexit referendum

FILE - In this Tuesday, April 17, 2018 file photo, scaffolding surrounds the Queen Elizabeth Tower, which holds the bell known as Big Ben, in London. The bell of Britain’s Parliament has been largely silent since 2017 while its iconic clock tower undergoes four years of repairs. Brexit-backing lawmakers are campaigning for it to strike at the moment Britain leaves the European Union -- 11 p.m. (2300GMT) on Jan. 31. Parliamentary officials say it is not worth the cost, which could come to 500,000 pounds ($650,000). The House of Commons Commission said Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2020 that because the clock mechanism has been dismantled and the belfry is currently getting a new floor, arranging for the bell to ring “could result in huge costs to the public purse.” (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, file)

FILE - In this Monday, May 27, 2019 file photo, Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage arrives at the party's HQ in London, prior to an event to mark the gains his party made in the European elections. Farage, the self-declared “pantomime villain” of Brexit, told the Associated Press Tuesday Jan. 14, 2020, he is leaving the European Union's parliament in Strasbourg later this week with a sense of mission accomplished. (AP Photo/Vudi Xhymshiti, File)

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar speaks with the media as he arrives for an EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Dec. 13, 2019. European Union leaders are gathering Friday to discuss Britain's departure from the bloc amid some relief that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has secured an election majority that should allow him to push the Brexit deal through parliament. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

In this handout photo provided by the House of Commons, Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures during the first Prime Minister's Questions of the year, in the House of Commons in London, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. The president of the European Commission warned Britain on Wednesday that it won’t get the “highest quality access” to the European Union's market after Brexit unless it makes major concessions. (Jessica Taylor/House of Commons via AP)

Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England speaks at a Bank of England Financial Stability Report Press Conference, in London, Monday, Dec. 16, 2019. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth,pool)

European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen delivers a speech at the London School of Economics in London, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. The European Commission's president warned Britain on Wednesday that it won’t get the “highest quality access” to the European Union's market after Brexit unless it makes major compromises. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

In this screen grab image issued by the Prime Minister's Press Office, showing Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his New Year's message to be broadcast Tuesday Dec. 31, 2019. Johnson has said Britain can look forward to a decade of "prosperity and opportunity", as it finally ends the "rancour and uncertainty" of Brexit. (Prime Minister's Press Office via AP)

FILE In this file photo dated Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019, Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street for the State Opening of Parliament by Queen Elizabeth II, in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster in London. Charismatic Prime Minister Johnson’s larger-than-expected margin of victory in the December general election may give him a chance to consolidate power during the coming 2020 year. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, FILE)

FILE - In this file photo dated Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019, a man looks up as police and fire personnel move in to remove climate activists and their banner, after they climbed the Europa building during a demonstration outside an EU summit meeting in Brussels. Massive challenges lay ahead for the European Union in 2020, as the impact of climate change seems likely to drive the bloc's thinking and policy initiatives over the coming years, starting Wednesday Jan. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, FILE)

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, right, and opposition Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn, left, walk through the Commons Members Lobby after hearing the Queen's Speech in Parliament, in London, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019. Britain's parliament returns following the election, for the State Opening of Parliament. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, Pool)