Ken Clarke has led Tory calls for the Government to give MPs a vote on its negotiating strategy before triggering formal Brexit talks.

The europhile former chancellor said the existing commitment from ministers to publish a Brexit plan is "extremely vague", adding the "strategic objectives" should be outlined in a document.

Mr Clarke suggested this should then require the approval of the Commons before Prime Minister Theresa May can begin the formal talks to leave the EU.

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Brexit Secretary David Davis claimed Mr Clarke's comments were an indication that he did not agree with the result of June's referendum.

The exchanges came after Labour said it will not accept a "late, vague plan" for Brexit ahead of voting to trigger Article 50

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said the Government must publish its outline for Brexit well ahead of any vote, to allow any amendments to be considered from both sides of the House.

But he was forced to insist Labour did not intend to delay the process beyond the end of March, amid pressure from a number of Tory MPs.

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Sir Keir also faced accusations from Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas of "falling into a Tory trap" by supporting the Government amendment to the Labour motion calling for a Brexit plan to be published.

Faced with a revolt by up to 40 Tory MPs, the Prime Minister on Tuesday bowed to pressure and backed a Labour motion which says she should publish a plan before triggering the formal process of leaving.

In return, most of the rebels and Labour are expected to back a compromise Government amendment to support Mrs May's pledge to invoke Article 50 to start Brexit by April.

Mr Clarke, intervening on Mr Davis, said: "Quite apart from the legalities of the situation, we do have to address the political question of the accountability of Government to this House for its important policy.

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"This word plan is being used in an extremely vague way and could cover some of the vague assertions ministers have been making for the last few weeks.

"Will you accept the House requires a description, published in a white paper preferably, of the strategic objectives the Government is going to be pursuing, submit that strategy to a vote of the House and once it has got the House's approval then it can move to invoking Article 50?"

Mr Davis replied: "You are at least straightforward in what you say - you don't really agree with the outcome of the referendum.

"My view, I agree with you to some extent, is very clear - you said the plan is vague. In fact, I think what I've said already to this House in terms of giving every possible information - subject to not undermining the negotiation - is actually more comprehensive.

"But there's not an issue here that we're not going to allow the House votes - we can't do it as a Government, even if we wanted to."

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He added there will be "considerable amounts of legislation" during the negotiations.

Opening the debate, Sir Keir claimed the Government had "caved in" by supporting an amended version of the Labour motion.

He said: "The Government must now prepare its plan and publish it.

"And I put the Government on notice, that if it fails to produce a plan by the time we are debating Article 50 legislation - if we are, assuming the Government doesn't win (the Supreme Court appeal) - amendments from this side and possibly from the other side of the House will be put forward setting out the minimum requirements of a plan.

"In other words, we're not going to have a situation where the Government seeks a vote in a vacuum, or produces a late, vague plan."

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Sir Keir reiterated the Opposition does not want to "frustrate the process or delay" the PM's timetable, a stance questioned by Mr Davis and other Tory MPs.

Labour frontbencher Sir Keir also said he accepted the Government will not make public all the details and tactics of its negotiating position.

But he said it is essential MPs and the public are given a plan that outlines the starting position, with enough detail to "end the circus of uncertainty" on issues such as the single market, the customs union and transitional arrangements.

He said: "Asking for a plan setting out the objectives is not to seek to undermine the UK's negotiating plan, nor is it to seek a running commentary.

"But it is, in fact, to have clarity, scrutiny and accountability."

Conservative former justice minister Dominic Raab accused Sir Keir of trying to wreck Brexit.

He said: "I can understand him pressing the Government for its plan, I can understand him setting down his red lines, I can't understand him wanting to enshrine it in legislation.

Read more: Parliamentary motion cannot affect legal issues over Brexit, Supreme Court told

"The only reason for doing that is so the Labour Party can set the Government up to be sued later. Isn't the truth - will he come clean - it's wrecking tactics by any other name?"

Sir Keir dismissed this assertion, saying: "The answer to the question is no".

He said the plan must also have enough detail to allow the relevant parliamentary bodies to scrutinise it effectively and for the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to do its job properly.

Conservative Crispin Blunt, Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, told Sir Keir: "I'm fascinated by this focus on the plan and the amount of work you're going to invite the OBR to do and everything else.

"You do understand that no plan survives engagement with the enemy."

Labour MPs were among those who took exception to the phrase used, with Mr Blunt insisting he was using a "military metaphor".

He added: "It is plain our negotiating hand is clear and it's clear it's not compatible with the position being taken by our 27 partners, so this is all going to change in the course of the negotiations and we're going to have to leave it to the Government to make those decisions."

Sir Keir said he believed Mr Blunt may "on reflection" think he "didn't use the right word in describing our partners as the enemy".

Mr Davis defended the Government's insistence that the detail of its negotiating strategy should remain secret.

He said: "The reason for this is to retain room for manoeuvre including the ability to give and take, to trade off between different interests, to maximise the value of concessions and to do so without always giving the other side advance notice.

"We must retain the ability to negotiate with a high degree of agility and speed and the more complex the negotiation the more important this is."

Mr Davis likened the forthcoming Brexit negotiations to trying to thread the eye of a needle.

"If you have a good eye and a steady hand it is easy enough," he said.

"If somebody jogs your elbow it's harder. If 650 people jog your elbow it's very much harder."

Tory Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) intervened to ask Mr Davis to commit to giving Parliament a vote on ratifying the final Brexit deal struck between the Government and Brussels.

He said: "Do you accept that you can be an honest Brexiteer who wants to get this through but still want to proclaim parliamentary sovereignty?

"That's a perfectly logical point of view."

Mr Davis replied: "Actually, there is a law that applies to it. The Constitutional Reform Act 2010.

"We are effectively bound by that."

Sir Keir then intervened and asked Mr Davis to confirm that there will be a vote on the final deal.

Mr Davis said: "All I can say is what I have said before which is that is what I expect, simple as that."

When pushed by Labour former frontbencher Chris Bryant to guarantee a vote, Mr Davis said: "If the European Union Parliament has a vote, it's inconceivable this House doesn't, simple as that."

Mr Davis was also grilled by a number of MPs on whether the Government wanted the UK to remain in the customs union.

He said: "What the Prime Minister said is this is not a binary option, there are about four different possibilities and we are still assessing that.

"I have given an undertaking to the Opposition spokesman that I will notify the House in detail when we come to that decision, so that's the point."

Mr Davis insisted that "no law will be changed without the explicit approval of Parliament".

The Brexit Secretary said the Government backed the "spirit" of Labour's motion with the caveat that "nothing we say will jeopardise our negotiating position".