Scottish Secretary: Theresa May’s deal is the only way forward

Mr Mundell said Mrs May’s deal is still the best option for an orderly Brexit.

Her Tory opponents would “have their moment” with the confidence vote, he said, but added: “I’m confident the Prime Minister will win this vote.

“I’m confident she will carry on and I hope still that MPs will… ultimately come to the conclusion the deal the Prime Minister has negotiated and continues to clarify is the only way forward.

“They will get their moment but after the vote has taken place and the Prime Minister is shown to have the confidence of a majority of MPs we will have to get back to the business of delivering Brexit.”

Mr Mundell said a leadership contest was “guaranteed” to delay the Brexit process and added: “I think it’s absolutely clear the Conservatives having a leadership contest now would be absolutely self-indulgent and a huge distraction.

“I don’t think the public want us to be bickering among ourselves for weeks or months.

“It wouldn’t change the fundamentals and the need to build a majority in Parliament for a deal, whoever was leader – there is no suggestion somebody new could go and negotiate this mythical deal some people still seem to think is out there.”

He dismissed alternatives such as a People’s Vote, a general election, or a softer Norway-style Brexit as “completely unacceptable” compared with Mrs May’s deal and called for MPs to “focus on the fact there is not an alternative deal out there”.

Mr Mundell also denied suggestions that forcing MPs to choose between Mrs May’s deal or no deal was democratically unacceptable.

“This is reality,” he said. “The reality is we’re leaving the EU – we needed to get a deal, we’ve got a deal, it’s the best deal available.

“Just because you don’t like things doesn’t make them go away.

“In the real world everybody out there deal with this in their own lives, they have to accept things they don’t like because the alternatives are much worse.”