Prime Minister warned denying vote will secure independence

Theresa May has been warned that denying the Scottish Parliament a vote on Brexit will make Scottish independence “inevitable”.

Angus Robertson, the SNP’s depute leader, said Holyrood must have the same rights in signing off the Brexit deal as the UK Parliament and legislatures across Europe.

The Moray MP earlier accused Mrs May of breaking her promise not to trigger Article 50 without first securing agreement from the UK’s devolved administrations.

Mrs May said Scotland, and the other devolved administrations, can expect a “significant increase” in powers as a result of Brexit.

Mr Robertson said it is wrong that the UK and EU parliaments, as well as those in the 27 other member states, get to approve the outcome of the negotiations, when Holyrood does not.

Speaking in the Commons, he said: “The Prime Minister says that she thinks Brexit will bring unity to the United Kingdom, it will not.

“On this issue it is not a United Kingdom and the Prime Minister needs to respect the differences across the nations of the United Kingdom.

“If she does not, if she remains intransigent, and if she denies Scotland a choice on our future, she will make Scottish independence inevitable.”

Mr Robertson told the PM that 62% of Scottish voters, and every local authority area north of the border, had backed keeping Britain in the EU in June’s referendum.

Mrs May responded: “My constituency voted to remain in the European Union. The point is that we are one United Kingdom and it was a vote of the whole United Kingdom.”

She insisted that in the wake of the ballot, most people want politicians to “respect that vote and get on with the job of delivering for everybody across the whole of the United Kingdom”.

She needs to respect the differences across the nations of the United Kingdom. ANGUS ROBERTSON

AnAlysis KierAn Andrews politicAl editor