London (CNN) The most vocal architect of Britain's seismic decision to leave the European Union thumbed his nose at the EU Parliament Tuesday as members booed and turned their backs on him, in the most visible clash of ideologies between Britain and Europe since last week's vote.
Nigel Farage, leader of the far-right UK Independence Party (UKIP), gloated unapologetically and antagonized a battered union in Brussels, calling for free trade with the bloc while insulting members in the same breath.
"Isn't it funny? When I came here 17 years ago and I said that I wanted to lead a campaign to get Britain out of the European Union, you all laughed at me. Well, I have to say, you're not laughing now, are you?" he said.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker speaks in the ear of UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage Tuesday.
"I know that virtually none of you have ever done a proper job in your lives or worked in business or worked in trade or indeed ever created a job. But listen, just listen," Farage said at the special meeting, held to address the Brexit fallout.
In an interview later with CNN, Farage brushed off his comments as a light-hearted joke, saying that the EU had called him "all the names under the sun."
"They don't like me. It's mutual," he said.
Britain's divorce from the EU is shaping up to be messy, with Prime Minister David Cameron also in Brussels and at loggerheads with EU leaders over how to even begin.
Britain wants to hold off invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty -- which will officially begin the separation process -- until it knows what a future deal with the European Union will look like. The union wants the opposite, refusing to talk deals until the withdrawal is made official.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Britain's separation from the EU was not a "cherry-picking exercise."
"If you want to exist and leave this family, then you cannot expect all the obligations to drop away but privileges to continue to exist," she said.
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi told CNN's Christiane Amanpour that the UK would not be able to belong to the European single market without accepting the free movement of people.
"In my view, it's impossible to belong to (a) community only with the good things and not with the bad things," he said.
Italian PM @matteorenzi: UK can't have single market access w/o free movement. Can't have only the "good things."
"It's impossible to be very communitarian about the economy and not about values. This is the problem, in my view, about this campaign."
On CNN, Farage called for the article to be invoked "in the next few weeks."
"I think we do need to send a message that we're serious about this," he said. "Let's crack on."
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 1999, Farage appealed to MEPs to be "pragmatic, sensible, grown up" following the British public's vote last week to leave.
"Let's cut between us a sensible, tariff-free deal, and thereafter, recognize that the United Kingdom will be your friend -- that we will trade with you, we will cooperate with you, we will be your best friends in the world," he said.
Farage warned that the UK would "not be the last member state to leave the European Union."
European Parliament President Martin Schulz cautioned Farage after the outspoken Euroskeptic insulted his fellow MEPs.
'Shame on you'
The fiery exchanges took place as the EU Parliament convened for an extraordinary plenary session in Brussels Tuesday, with European and British delegates meeting to discuss the UK's complicated and potentially messy divorce from the bloc.
At one point, a German MEP accused Farage and fellow Leave campaigners of misleading the British public over the vote. "The worst liars can be found among UKIP," said Manfred Weber, leader of the European People's Party, to loud applause.
"Mr. Farage, if you had an ounce of decency in you, you would apologize today to the British. Shame on you."
During his speech, Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, turned to confront Farage and said he was surprised he was there.
"That's the last time you are applauding here," he said to the British Brexiters.
"You were fighting for the exit, the British people voted in favor of the exit. Why are you here?"
No-confidence
Across the English Channel, Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn lost a confidence vote as a post-Brexit tornado tears through the world of British politics.
The secret ballot came after two-thirds of his shadow cabinet resigned in an apparent party coup. In Britain, the main opposition party appoints "shadow" cabinet ministers, mirroring those in government and taking on the same portfolios.
British media reported that his loss was overwhelming, with the vast majority voting against him.
The no-confidence vote is non-binding and means Corbyn is still party leader, but it paves the way for an official leadership challenge to be launched.
Corbyn said he would not stand down, despite the vote.
"I was democratically elected leader of our party for a new kind of politics by 60% of Labour members and supporters, and I will not betray them by resigning. Today's vote by MPs has no constitutional legitimacy," he said in a statement.
Corbyn brought tens of thousands of new members to the party from the hard left and enjoys overwhelming popularity, winning the leadership last year by a 40% margin.
The hard-left leader has been divisive among MPs in center-left Labour, who see his vision of a Britain with salary caps and nationalized transportation services as too radical.
If an official challenge is launched, Corbyn will need the support of just 20% of MPs and party members of the European parliament to run for his own job, and he could easily be re-elected as the vote goes to the entire party.
On Monday, Corbyn called for unity in the party, warning against "internal factional maneuvering."
And the jockeying for power has already begun in Cameron's Conservative Party -- prominent leave campaigner Boris Johnson and Cameron ally Theresa May are seen as the front-runners, while Finance Minister George Osborne has ruled himself out of the running.
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