NICOLA Sturgeon has hinted that SNP MPs could back calls for a customs union in next Monday’s vote in the Commons.

Tweeting after the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal was roundly defeated for the third time, Sturgeon said that while her party favoured a People’s Vote or remaining in the EU, they would now “work with others to find the best option possible”.

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It’s not yet clear what proposals MPs will be asked to vote on next Monday, but it's almost certain that at least one of them will be a form of Customs Union.

There had been some criticism of the SNP for abstaining on motions backing some form of customs union, or soft Brexit, during last Wednesday’s indicative votes.

One proposal, tabled by veteran Tory Europhile Ken Clarke, and backed by Labour’s Yvette Cooper, which would have required the government to negotiate a “permanent and comprehensive UK-wide customs union with the EU” in any Brexit deal, was defeated by eight votes.

The SNP abstained on the motion, with the party saying it wasn’t quite right as it wouldn’t allow for the free movement of EU citizens to Scotland, which is a key issue for the party.

On Friday afternoon, the party’s former depute leader, Stewart Hosie, added his name to the Common Market 2.0, or Norway+, proposals being put forward by Tory MP Nick Boles.

This would see the UK become a member of the European Free Trade Association (Efta) and European Economic Area (EEA).

While it keeps the UK out of the EU and gives some distance from the European Court of Justice, it does still involve freedom of movement.

Hosie told The National that Bole’s proposal was closest to the “compromise position” set out by the Scottish Government in December 2016.

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“While the SNP would prefer to see Brexit revoked entirely, while we have campaigned for a People’s Vote, should we find ourselves in a position where there will be some kind of Brexit, then we need to look at the least worst option.

“I put my name to this motion for next week in order to help keep it on the ballot paper, for MPs to consider when we get to that point then.”

He added that the SNP’s “compromise position is still on the table, if it’s required, and this is the closest thing to that, that we think has the remotest chance".

The party’s Foreign Affairs spokesman, Stephen Gethins, said they supported it being debated again next week and that the SNP would "continue discussions with other parties over the weekend".

During First Minister’s Questions, interim Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw accused the First Minister of stoking up "faux outrage".

He told MSPs: "When it came to the crunch the First Minister whipped her MPs against supporting her own policy of a customs union.

"Isn't it the case that what Scotland saw yet again yesterday is that when push comes to shove for the SNP, it's not about finding a solution to Brexit, it's about pursuing their independence obsession?

"Surely it is time to back the deal and get on with it."

The First Minister replied: "For two long years when stopping Brexit didn't seem possible the SNP argued for a single market-customs union membership compromise.

"That was ignored by the Tories and indeed everybody else.

"Now that option, which I think is the minimum you would need to protect Scotland's interests, wasn't actually on the ballot paper last night.

"That said, over the next few days we will continue to work across Parliament for a compromise of that nature, if that proves to be the only alternative to a hard Brexit."

But she added: "This whole process, thanks to the Tories, is now such a mess that stopping Brexit altogether must be our top priority.

"Moreover, that is now possible. Actually, the highest number of votes cast in the House of Commons last night was for the People's Vote."

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Yesterday, she tweeted: “Third defeat for PM’s bad deal - she must now accept that it’s dead. The Commons will now return on Monday to find a way forward. I hope that willl be to put the issue back to the people and/or revoke Article 50 - but @theSNP will work with others to find the best option possible.”

When the Guardian’s Libby Brooks tweeted that with SNP support, one of the options for the customs union option could pass, the First Minister replied: “We’ll decide votes when we see options obvs - but a customs union on its own is not a position we’ve advocated because it would not protect Scotland’s interests. The compromise we proposed (only if remain not an option) was full single market and customs union membership.”