Scottish party leaders have been asked to back a public vote on the final terms of Brexit.

Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie made the call as he argued a united front north of the border could offer a way out of a "damaging" deal to leave the EU.

It comes after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told the New Statesman last week that a referendum on the final deal for leaving the EU "probably gets more and more difficult to resist".

Mr Rennie said it would be in the Scottish Government's interests to back the Lib Dems' position.

"They also believe there should be a way out of this if the deal is damaging," he said.

"Their preferred solution was another independence referendum. But they have cooled on the idea as people in Scotland have made it clear that we have settled the independence question.

"Our escape chute of a Brexit deal referendum could therefore be a credible alternative that they could support."

Former Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has backed another vote if the Brexit deal takes the UK out of the single market.

But Anas Sarwar and Richard Leonard, the MSPs vying to replace her, have both rejected the call for a second ballot.

Mr Rennie challenged the pair, saying: "Tell Jeremy Corbyn he needs to give the British people the final say on Brexit instead of giving Theresa May the authority to make that call.

"With a united front on Brexit Scotland could make the difference. We need to stand together when it matters most."

Mr Rennie, who is due to address the Scottish Centre on European Relations on Wednesday, also called on Ruth Davidson to stand up against a bad Brexit deal.

The Tory leader has claimed she would vote Remain if there was a re-run of the referendum.

Mr Rennie said: "Ruth has said that Brexit will hit our economy in such a way that we will never quite recover.

"If she believes that, she has a duty to stand up and do something about it."