LABOUR leader Jeremy Corbyn has been accused of “capitulating” to the Tories as he ramped up his support for Brexit yesterday, insisting Scotland and the UK as a whole could benefit from leaving the European Union.

The Labour leader, who has been criticised for his lukewarm support for remaining in the EU, is expected to order his MPs to vote in favour of triggering article 50 if it comes before the Commons. In a speech in Glasgow he argued that exiting the bloc would pave the way for an opportunity for greater devolution as well as provide a chance to redistribute wealth.

“Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were all empowered by Labour’s devolution,” he said. “Now Brexit presents a further opportunity.”

He stressed Brexit would mean having to develop “a long-term plan to build a fairer, more just country”, and revealed he would hold a summit next month with European socialist leaders to help get “a Brexit that works for Britain”.

The SNP, the Scottish Greens and the Liberal Democrats said he had caved in to the Tories’ demands for a hard Brexit and was ignoring the evidence of the disastrous impact it would have on the economy, on workers' rights and social protections.

“Brexit will only increase the threat to workers’ rights, in a race to the bottom which sees social protections ripped up,” said the SNP MSP Linda Fabiani. “Labour are just capitulating to the Tories at Westminster – opening the door to economic catastrophe.”

The Scottish Greens said his insistence Brexit could bring opportunities was an insult to the 62 per cent of Scots who voted to Remain and to those concerned about the prospect of 80,000 jobs being lost and a £2000 fall in wages.

“It’s like soaking everything in petrol to put out the fire,”said a Scottish Greens spokesman. “He now has to tell us if he’s going to side with the Tories in trying to deny the people of Scotland the right to choose our own future.”

Willie Rennie, the Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, also hit out.

“The comments made by Jeremy Corbyn show that Labour has well and truly given up on Europe and have signed a blank cheque to Theresa May on her Brexit negotiations,” he said. “Labour has truly failed to be an effective opposition.”

In his speech Corbyn rejected Nicola Sturgeon’s proposals of a special deal for Scotland, allowing it to remain in the single market, a position supported by Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale, who joined him on the platform yesterday.

Theresa May rejected such a plan in her speech on Tuesday saying the UK would be leaving as “one union” and would not be considering holding on to “bits of membership”.

Asked if he thought it would be possible for Scotland to remain in the single market, he said: “I think the question of single market access is and has to be a UK decision.”

Corbyn signalled on Thursday he would impose a three-line whip if the government lost its Supreme Court challenge and brought a Brexit Bill to Parliament.

The court ruling will be published next Tuesday and Scottish Labour’s sole MP Ian Murray, whose constituents voted to Remain, is believed to be among those prepared to defy the whip. If, as expected, the government loses the court appeal, it could table legislation giving it the power to start the formal divorce process with the EU as early as next Wednesday.

Corbyn also attacked Scottish independence in his speech yesterday, claiming it would result in “turbo-charged austerity” for Scotland and a “glaring hole” in the cash for essential public services. Nicola Sturgeon dismissed his claims as “rubbish”.

The Labour leader said that while “of course Scotland has the talent and ability to run its own affairs”, he did not believe this “would be the best option for the Scottish people”.

Since the 2014 independence referendum, he insisted the case for Scotland leaving the UK had “weakened” and cited the plunge in North Sea oil revenues as one reason for this. He also argued independence would “not tackle the underlying problems facing Scotland” such as poverty, and would mean “political power would lie with the Edinburgh establishment” while “economic power would remain south of the border”.

Commenting on Corbyn’s speech, an SNP spokesman said: “Jeremy Corbyn’s comments are exactly the sort of carping from the sidelines that Kezia Dugdale warned about when she said that Labour would be unelectable under his leadership.”