LABOUR leadership hopeful Jess Phillips has said that she "can't see a circumstance" where it would be better for Scotland to leave the UK.
Phillips, who announced she would be standing to succeed Jeremy Corbyn as leader on Friday, said not having a clear position on Scottish independence and Brexit is a key reason why the party has lost elections.
Speaking on the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme, the Birmingham Yardley MP outlined her opposition to holding indyref2.
"I think that some of the reasons that we lost in Scotland and have been losing in Scotland for some time - this isn't wholly down to the last General Election - is that we have, since the referendum up there, not necessarily had a clear position on the two big constitutional questions of the day," she said.
READ MORE: Jess Phillips announces candidacy for Labour leadership
"I think that people, when they look at a political party, if they are not certain on what they are saying on any one thing, they lose trust with the public."
She added: "I don't think we should have another referendum on Scottish independence - 53% of the Scottish public in the General Election did not vote for a party that was promoting independence.
"I think that we should be talking about things that are relevant to the lives of people in Scotland.
"I can't see a circumstance where I think it would be better for Scotland to leave the UK."
READ MORE: Rebecca Long-Bailey confirms she will run for Labour leadership
At this General Election, Labour's policy was not to stand in the way of indyref2 - but not to hold it in the early years of a Labour government.
Phillips is the first candidate for the top job to talk about her stance on indyref2 in detail.
In her pitch for the role, Rebecca Long-Bailey was critical of the party's move to join forces with the Tories for the Better Together campaign in 2014, but she stopped short of taking a stance on a second independence referendum.
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