People feel "scunnered" about debating if Scotland should be independent or not, according to David Mundell.

The secretary of state for Scotland made the comments after he appeared before Holyrood's Europe and external affairs committee.

He was at the Scottish Parliament to inform the committee of his work in the UK Government's negotiations to leave the European Union.

Mundell dismissed the Scottish Government's launch of a consultation on draft plans to hold a second independence referendum.

It aims to hear views on legislation which the Scottish Government will put forward if it determines independence is the only or best means to "protect" the country's relationship with the rest of Europe.

He said: "If the First Minister had been listening to people in Scotland she wouldn't be having this consultation at all.

"Hopefully it is a genuine consultation and not just hundreds of thousands of Yes supporters writing in to say what a great idea it is and at the end of that consultation there'll be an understanding that people in Scotland are scunnered of all this constitutional wrangling."

The secretary of state was also critical of the First Minister's position on Brexit.

Mundell said: "We get a lot of complaints about 'the UK Government has not set out their position'.

"Without getting into a he-said-she-said, the Scottish Government has not set out what their position is.

"In fact a number of contradictory statements have been made over the last four months by the First Minister.

"We are very much, as the Prime Minister made clear on Monday, very much looking forward to seeing what it is they actually propose."

When asked by STV News what contradictory positions the Scottish Government has held, Mundell replied: "Well, I think it has moved from a suggestion that somehow Scotland can remain in the EU whilst the rest of the UK left the EU to now being leading an alliance of people who are against the so-called 'hard Brexit'."

On Monday, Sky News reported the Scottish Government would ask Downing Street to allow the country to apply to join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), a separate European trade body which has close ties to the EU, while staying part of the UK.

Membership of EFTA would require Holyrood having the power to strike autonomous international trade deals.

Bing part of EFTA would also mean Scotland would retain free movement of people with the rest of the European Union.

In her closing speech at her party's conference in Glasgow earlier this month, the First Minister said her Brexit proposals will include both immigration and the power to strike international deals being devolved to Holyrood.

Mundell said he hopes the EFTA approach "is not required" as the UK Government wishes "to negotiate a deal that gives the whole of the UK maximum access to the single market".

He described Brexit as "one of the most complicated negotiations that has ever taken place".

SNP MSP Richard Lochhead, who sits on the Europe committee, said: "David Mundell squirmed his way through his appearance at Holyrood, using weasel words to hide the fact that he appears to be rowing back on his support for Scotland's place in the single market - while it is increasingly obvious that he is being frozen out of discussions by his Cabinet colleagues.

"This is the latest example of the Scottish Tories abandoning their principles because Theresa May - who previously warned of the dangers of leaving the single market herself - has ordered the party to get behind a hard-right Tory Brexit.

"The Tories are in complete denial - there is no 'bespoke deal' that allows Theresa May all of the advantages of EU membership while simultaneously burning our bridges with the continent.

"The sooner the UK Government realise this and listen to the sensible suggestions put forward by the First Minister the better."