UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hail the “dawn of a new era” on Friday, as the UK prepares to leave the European Union on Friday, reports BBC.

The UK will leave the EU at 23:00 GMT, ending 47 years of membership.

In a speech to be shown at 22:00 GMT – an hour before the official departure time – he will say Brexit is “not an end but a beginning”.

He will describe severing ties with the other 27 EU nations as “a moment of real national renewal and change”.

Little will change immediately, as the UK begins a “transition period”.

Most EU laws will continue to be in force – including the free movement of people – until the end of December, by which time the UK aims to have reached a permanent free trade agreement with the EU.

In a statement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn urged the country to “build a truly internationalist, diverse and outward-looking Britain'”.

Brexit was originally scheduled for 31 March last year.

To mark Brexit, Mr Johnson will hold a cabinet meeting in Sunderland on Friday morning.