Brexit deal between May and Corbyn would 'satisfy nobody' and 'make country poorer', Nicola Sturgeon says

Scottish first minister warns against 'cobbled together least bad option' and calls for long delay to Brexit instead

Any Brexit deal agreed between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn would "make the country poorer", Nicola Sturgeon has said.

The Scottish first minister said a cross-party compromise plan would be a "cobbled together least bad option" that "satisfies nobody" and could be "unpicked" by a future Eurosceptic prime minister such as Boris Johnson.

It comes as the prime minister and the Labour leader prepare to meet to try to thrash out a Brexit deal that could secure parliamentary approval.

Ms May reached out to Mr Corbyn on Tuesday after her own Brexit plan was rejected three times by MPs and the Commons also failed to approve any of the proposed alternatives.

The prime minister will also meet with Ms Sturgeon on Wednesday as she adopts a new cross-party approach to Brexit.

Speaking before the talks, the SNP leader poured cold water on suggestions that a Labour-Conservative deal could provide a solution to the Brexit crisis.

She told the BBC: "I suppose [it's] better late than never but the real problem here is that time is out on this process and I think there's a danger that as the clock runs down over the next 48 hours or so, then if anything can come of this process now, what it will be is a cobbled together least bad option rather than the best option for the country.

"[It will be] an option that it won't take too long for people to realise satisfies nobody, makes the country poorer and potentially could be unpicked by a new prime minister such as Boris Johnson."

Ms Sturgeon said the prime minister should instead seek to "pause" Brexit by asking the EU for a long extension to the Article 50 process.

She said: "I think what really needs to happen now is a pause, a request for a long extension. The EU will ask two things: firstly, will the UK fight the European elections - and I think the emphatic answer to that should be yes - and secondly, what's the extension for.

"In my view the answer should be yes, by all means see if the House of Commons can put together a compromise option, but then put that to the people in another referendum so people after almost three years can decide: do they want some second best compromise or actually, all things considered, is it better to go for the best option, which is to remain in the EU?"

The talks between Ms May and Mr Corbyn come after the prime minister chaired seven hours of cabinet meetings and then delivered a statement in Downing Street on Tuesday night announcing the government's intention to seek a cross-party solution to the Brexit crisis.

She said: "Despite the best efforts of MPs, the process that the House of Commons has tried to lead has not come up with an answer. So today I am taking action to break the logjam: I am offering to sit down with the leader of the opposition and to try to agree a plan - that we would both stick to - to ensure that we leave the European Union and that we do so with a deal.

Read more

"The ideal outcome of this process would be to agree an approach on a future relationship that delivers on the result of the referendum, that both the leader of the opposition and I could put to the House for approval, and which I could then take to next week’s European Council."

If the two party leaders could not agree on a way forward, Ms May said, then MPs will be asked to vote once again on a number of options. The government "stands ready to abide by the decision" made by the Commons, she added.