Mundell: Talks 'not about stopping Brexit'

David Mundell said the UK government was seeking to deliver an "orderly Brexit"

Everything is up for discussion in talks about Brexit - except for a new referendum which could halt it, the Scottish Secretary has said.

Prime Minister Theresa May is seeking talks with other parties after her blueprint for leaving the EU was rejected overwhelmingly by MPs.

But David Mundell said Mrs May is "not going down a route to stop Brexit".

Labour and the SNP want Mrs May to rule out leaving the EU without a deal as a precondition for entering discussions.

The SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford said his party would "engage positively in talks", but there had to be an agreement about "taking no-deal off the table" and the possibility of a new referendum on the EU - dubbed a "People's Vote" by campaigners.

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The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March under current legislation, with or without a deal.

The withdrawal plan her that Mrs May's government agreed with European negotiators was shot down in the Commons on Tuesday by a record margin of 432 to 202.

But she then survived a vote of no confidence on Wednesday after Conservative rebels and the Democratic Unionist Party backed her, despite opposing her deal.

The prime minister is now seeking talks with MPs from across the Commons in a bid to find a way forward.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has refused to join the talks unless the prospect of leaving without a deal is ruled out.

Mr Blackford said a new referendum was "the right way to go"

Mr Blackford had a meeting with Mrs May on Wednesday night, as did leaders of the Lib Dems and Plaid Cymru.

However he also wrote to the prime minister saying that the SNP would only participate in talks "if you are able to confirm that the extension of Article 50, a ruling out of no-deal Brexit and the option of a second EU referendum would form the basis of those discussions".

On Thursday, Mr Mundell - one of the longest-standing members of the UK government - said the talks were "on the basis of getting to a deal, not getting to a point of stopping Brexit".

He told the BBC: "Everything is up for discussion, but what isn't going to be an outcome is arrangements that seek to stop Brexit which I believe the People's Vote is designed to do.

"It would be extremely divisive in our country. We've had a People's Vote, people across the UK voted to leave the EU. We are respecting the result of that and seeking to deliver an orderly Brexit.

"That's what discussions are about. Of course people can raise any issues that they want, but the discussions are not a cover for trying to stop Brexit."

Also speaking to the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme, Mr Blackford said: "I actually think on the basis of where we are a People's Vote is the right way to go. I think on the basis of the paralysis in parliament, we ought to put that back to the people.

"I'm not saying that is a position the prime minister would support, but if she is serious about engagement, if she is serious about trying to find a way through this, she has at least got to have that discussion about these options."

This was echoed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who posted on Twitter that "everything is not on the table - PM's offer of talks is a promise to listen, but only if we all agree with her".

Labour MP Barry Gardiner said party leaders who were meeting Mrs May were "not sticking to the principles they have espoused".

Referring to his party's leader, he said: "Jeremy is actually sticking to his principles, and many of us would say that is what he always does and that is why people in this country respect him."

The SNP and the Lib Dems have repeatedly called on Labour to join them in backing a new referendum, with Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie saying there was "nowhere left for the Labour leadership to hide".