SCOTS didn’t vote for Scotland to stay in the EU, a Conservative MSP has said.

Adam Tomkins, Conservative MSP for Glasgow, said there is no separate Scottish negotiating position and as such he said Nicola Sturgeon should get involved in the UK negotiating team taking the country out of the EU.

He said the First Minister’s “talents” would be best deployed under a UK effort.

READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon holds Brussels talks to set out Scotland's EU position

Prof Tomkins, elected in May to Holyrood, is a leading constitutional academic who campaigned for a remain vote but he wants a UK team to get the best for Scotland.

He said: “Scotland did not vote to remain in the EU, Scotland voted for the United Kingdom to remain in the EU.

“There’s no mandate here for any interpretation that the people of Scotland decided that Scotland must be a member state in its own right.

“So I think words matter and we need to be clear.”

The new MSP said that he supports David Cameron’s call for a “team UK” in negotiations with all the Prime Minister the three devolved administrations and the London Mayor taking key roles.

Glasgow Times:

In that he said Nicola Sturgeon has a big part to play.

He said: “Scotland has no diplomatic corps, Scotland has no foreign service because we voted not to have those things in September 2014 when we voted to be in the United Kingdom.

“I would much rather see the First Minister focus her very considerable energy and talent on assisting the United Kingdom in negotiations with our European partners.”

Prof Tomkins said the debate needs to move to the specific details of what the country hopes to achieve in the negotiations to come.

He said he was concerned, from his academic background that universities still had access to the Erasmus European student exchange scheme.

READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon holds Brussels talks to set out Scotland's EU position

He will wants to know if the criminal justice system be part of European arrest warrant programme and if healthcare protection card continue to be available to people in Scotland.

He added: “The answers should be across the UK because it’s the UK’s membership of the EU this debate was about.”

After Scotland and Northern Ireland and London voted to remain he said it is vital all parts of the UK are involved, but doing so together.

He said: “We don’t want a result that’s going to damage the global reputation of the City of London, London voted to remain, nor do we want a result that will damage Scotland’s interests.

“But we do want a negotiation the honours the result of the referendum negotiated by a pan UK all UK cross party team in which I expect the First Minister to play leading role.

READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon holds Brussels talks to set out Scotland's EU position

“I would frankly much rather see her make a serious and significant contribution to that than see her try to negotiate on her own behalf. For Scotland alone.”