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In a speech to stakeholders in London today [6 December 2018] Mr Mundell pointed to the businesses the length and breadth of Scotland who have urged MPs to vote for the deal. He said:

I have engaged closely with the business world in Scotland, and the Prime Minister was in Scotland last week. We鈥檝e heard concerns. We鈥檝e faced some difficult questions. But a clear view has also emerged. 皇冠体育appre is a recognition that there are currently only two options on the table 鈥� and that one of them, a no deal Brexit, would be a disaster for the economy. 皇冠体育appre is a consistent view that the Withdrawal Agreement provides a workable basis on which to move forward. Over the past fortnight, calls to support the deal have grown steadily louder.

皇冠体育app Scottish Secretary set out that the deal 鈥� while a compromise 鈥� was the best alternative to a 鈥榥o deal鈥� which would be bad for businesses and individuals across Scotland. He said:

I am more and more convinced the deal is right for Scotland and the whole of the UK. I鈥檓 not saying it is perfect. And let me be clear, I鈥檓 not pretending organisations and business leaders believe it is perfect. It is a compromise. No-one gets things all their own way in a negotiation and we have had 18 months of tough negotiations with the EU. But it is increasingly clear that both sides have had to give ground. Parts of the Withdrawal Agreement are as uncomfortable for other EU member states as they are for us 鈥� and that鈥檚 why I do not believe it is realistic to suppose there is a better deal on offer.

皇冠体育app Scottish Secretary stressed the Prime Minister鈥檚 robust assurances on protecting Scotland鈥檚 fishing industry. He said:

It is essential that Brexit delivers for our fishermen. 皇冠体育appy want out of the CFP. 皇冠体育appy want the UK negotiating on quotas and access to waters as an independent coastal state. 皇冠体育appy do not want a future deal that links EU access to our fishing grounds to our access to EU markets. We can and will deliver all that. 皇冠体育app Prime Minister has defended our fishing industry in negotiations so far 鈥� and has pledged 100 per cent to do so in future. Claims that Scotland鈥檚 fishermen have been 鈥榮old out鈥� are demonstrably false. It鈥檚 old fashioned scaremongering.

Mr Mundell reiterated his view that the proposed Irish backstop will protect the integrity of the UK. He said:

I accept the backstop remains a concern. It would result in a limited number of additional checks on livestock and goods entering Northern Ireland from the UK. This is an extension of the already existing unique circumstances in order to prevent a hard border. As a Unionist I鈥檓 wary of anything that might appear to weaken the UK鈥檚 vital internal market. But I鈥檓 a Unionist and a devolutionist. I鈥檝e been a champion of doing things differently within our Union since I became an MSP nearly 20 years ago. And what I see proposed for Northern Ireland 鈥� in the event of the backstop kicking in 鈥� are effective, carefully tailored arrangements that take account of their special and unique circumstances. That means avoiding a hard border with Ireland. It means honouring the Belfast Agreement and fostering the still fragile peace process. What I do not see proposed 鈥� crucially - is a border down the Irish Sea. Nor do I see 鈥榮pecial treatment鈥� that would give Northern Ireland a competitive advantage and should be extended to Scotland. In short, I see a pragmatic solution to a difficult problem.