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Remain campaigners in Scottish Labour have expressed dismay after it emerged that Brexit will be debated during a graveyard slot at their party conference this weekend.

The biggest political issue facing the country will be sidelined at Richard Leonard’s first

conference as leader, with delegates getting only an hour on Sunday morning to discuss it.

Scottish Labour will convene in Dundee from Friday for the three-day annual conference – but the increasingly contentious issue of EU single market membership will struggle to get a hearing.

Leonard has positioned himself behind UK leader Jeremy Corbyn’s recent conversion to continued membership of an EU customs union.

(Image: Free to use/Handout)

But both left-wing leaders are hostile to membership of the single market, which they fear could threaten Labour plans to give state aid to ailing industries such as steelworks.

Several Constituency Labour Parties have submitted motions backing permanent single market membership.

The move is spearheaded by a new campaign group set up by former party leader Kezia Dugdale.

A pro-Remain Labour source said: “A short one-hour slot on Sunday morning to discuss the biggest issue facing the country in a generation is disappointing.

“Ideally more time should be made available. Given that two of the slots will be taken up by shadow ministers Neil Findlay and Claire Baker, that doesn’t leave much time for dissenting voices.

“But members will rise to the occasion and hold a positive debate in the democratic traditions of the party.”

(Image: PA)

The one-hour debate will be followed by Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell’s closing address to delegates.

Dugdale has joined forces with the party’s longest-serving Scottish MP Ian Murray to launch a campaign group to persuade Labour to back permanent UK membership of the single market. They co-chair the group with MEP Catherine Stihler.

Dugdale said: “Jeremy Corbyn’s welcome decision to support a customs union puts clear blue water between us and the Tories.

“However, if we are to leave the EU, the least-worst option for limiting the damage caused by a Tory Brexit is to also remain in the single market.

“This is the only way to tackle austerity, protect jobs and defend our hard-won rights for workers and consumers.

“Scottish Labour can lead the way and help persuade our party to ensure the UK permanently remains in the single market.”

(Image: DAILY RECORD)

Shadow Scottish Secretary Lesley Laird yesterday declined to back the single market motions.

She said: “Let’s wait and see what the wording of the motion that comes to conference is.

“We have put a jobs first Brexit at the heart of our decision-making and we will continue to do that.”

A Scottish Labour spokesman said: “There is no state which is a full member of the single market which is not a member of the European Union.

“In keeping with the policy laid out by Sir Keir Starmer, Labour’s Brexit spokesman, Scottish Labour will continue to seek a deal which retains the benefits of the single market, and will not support a deal which does not.”

Meanwhile, Nicola Sturgeon yesterday said no first minister “worth their salt” would agree to support the EU Withdrawal Bill in its current form.

The legislation – which is designed to transpose EU law into British law so the same rules apply on the day of Brexit as the day before – will see EU responsibilities in devolved areas initially being transferred to Westminster.

Both the Scottish and Welsh governments have said they cannot recommend that legislative consent is given to the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill as it stands.

The UK Government said the legislation will allow common frameworks to be created ahead of further devolution but devolved governments say it amounts to a power grab and must be amended.

Sturgeon told ITV’s Peston On Sunday she could not commit to backing the EU Withdrawal Bill “at this stage because we haven’t reached the agreement that we would need to reach”.

She added: “I should say the Welsh Government are in exactly the same position as the Scottish Government.

(Image: Getty Images Europe)

“There has been movement on the part of the UK Government – we’ve welcomed that – but it doesn’t yet address the issue of principle at stake.

“We accept, as do Wales, that there will be areas where common frameworks across the UK make sense and that would probably be the case if and when Scotland becomes independent.

“But the question is ‘who decides?’ and at the moment the UK Government’s proposition is that even in areas of devolved competence – agriculture, the environment, fishing, justice – they should be able to impose frameworks on Scotland and Wales.

“Our position is that where there are devolved areas, it should only be by the consent of the Scottish and Welsh parliaments, so I hope we can reach agreement.”

Downing Street said on Friday that Theresa May and Sturgeon agreed to work to break

the deadlock around the Bill during a phone call made after the Prime Minister’s Brexit speech.