Turkey could follow in the UK’s footsteps and hold a referendum on whether to continue its stalled EU membership bid, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, accusing the bloc of discriminating against his Muslim-majority country.

Although he has often lashed out at the EU, Mr Erdogan’s speech on Wednesday marked the first time he has suggested that Turkey could cancel its accession bid.

“We can stand up and ask the people just like the British are doing,” Mr Erdogan said, speaking in Istanbul on the eve of the UK’s referendum day. “We would ask, ‘do we continue the negotiations with the European Union or do we end it?’ If the people say ‘continue’, we would carry on.”