IAN Blackford has branded Jeremy Corbyn "the midwife for Brexit" for failing to call a no-confidence vote in the Conservative Government as he confirmed the SNP had abandoned its support for the Norway-Plus option and was swinging full-square behind a People’s Vote.

During an emergency Commons debate on the proposed UK-EU deal, secured by the Nationalists, their leader at Westminster accused the Labour leader of having ducked the issue with his "embarrassing stunt" of calling for a confidence vote in Theresa May rather than the Government as a whole.

Focusing on the Prime Minister rather than her administration means there is no statutory requirement on the Government, which controls Commons business, to allow parliamentary time for the issue to be debated and voted upon.

Mr Blackford told MPs: "The Leader of the Opposition has become the midwife for Brexit; he is letting the Government off the hook.”

The Highland MP described Mr Corbyn’s motion as an embarrassing “stunt” and pleaded with the Labour leader to “unite” and work on a cross-party basis with the SNP, the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Greens.

However, while there are behind-the-scenes talks between Labour and the SNP taking place at Westminster to see how they could coalesce behind an alternative to the PM’s Brexit Plan, it is hard to see how Mr Blackford’s outspoken attack on the Labour leadership will help this cause.

As the SNP leader rose to spoke in the debate, he was barracked from the Conservative benches with one MP being heard to say: “Get back to the Isle of Skye.”

Mr Blackford, the local MP, hit back angrily, saying such remarks displayed “ignorance and arrogance by so-called honourable members” from the Conservative benches.

Later, Anna Soubry, the Tory Remainer, asked him if the SNP would continue to support so-called “Norway-Plus,” – which would involve the UK staying in the single market with a customs union arrangement - or did he believe that that “boat has set sail”.

The Nationalist said the Tory backbencher’s intervention was a “very useful” one and accepted that hitherto this option was the minimum one that the SNP would accept.

However, Mr Blackford went on: “I believe that ship has now sailed and we ought to be staying in the EU; that is the best option and we should be putting that to the people.”

This change confirmed the Nationalists’ shift in policy, reported by The Herald two weeks ago, when the SNP leader said his party was swinging fully behind a People’s Vote as the “best option” going forward in the Brexit debate.

Later, Steve Barclay for the Government defended the PM's Brexit Plan, noting how by the mid-January vote ministers would have had time to respond to concerns expressed and to hold further discussions with the EU27.

"There is broad support across the House for much of the deal, it is a good deal, the only deal, and I believe it is the right deal in offering for the country," declared the Brexit Secretary.

He added: "I hope MPs will look again at the risk to jobs and services in a no-deal, the risk to our democracy of not leaving, and MPs will choose to back the deal when it returns to the House."

Sir Keir Starmer for Labour accused the Government of "running down the clock".

He told MPs: "It's certainly not governing in the national interest. Observers often say to me that the Prime Minister is showing 'resilience'. But this is not resilience, this is reckless."

The Shadow Brexit Secretary added: "What is happening, and it saddens me to say so, is the Government is running down the clock to put maximum pressure on MPs to face what they will present as a binary choice between the deal that is before us...and no-deal. That's the only purpose left in this delay."