In the two days since it was posted on parliament's official petition website, more than 3 million people have signed a petition asking the British government to cancel Brexit.

The number climbed dramatically in the less than 36 hours it was opened for signing, leading the Petitions Committee to tweet: "The rate of signing is the highest the site has ever had to deal with."

The petition received more than a quarter of a million signatures shortly after it was put online Wednesday, and caused parliament's petition webpages to crash more than once.

The petition reads: "The government repeatedly claims 'exiting the EU is the will of people.' We need to put a stop to this claim by proving the strength of public support now for remaining in the EU. A people's vote may not happen-so vote now."

Many celebrities and lawmakers tweeted support for the petition, one of the most popular ever submitted to parliament's website.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon wrote: "An issue as big and important as Brexit should not come down to petitions - that said, if you are frustrated that the [prime minister] is just not listening, you can sign here."

Downing Street suggested that Prime Minister Theresa May is likely to ignore the petition, saying she "will not countenance revoking Article 50."

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