David Davis has said Brexit will still go ahead even if MPs voted against an EU withdrawal deal.

The Brexit Secretary said any vote would not change the fact the UK was leaving the bloc, as a result of last summer's referendum.

Mr Davis also told MPs some unskilled migration was likely to continue after Brexit, adding Parliament would now have the power to set the UK's policy.

As Mr Davis made a statement in the Commons, Tory MP Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) asked: "You made clear in your speech that no deal is better than a bad deal.

"In the unlikely, I'm sure, event that we were to get a bad deal and the House were to vote against it, what would be the impact in terms of our status within the European Union?"

In reply, Mr Davis said: "The referendum last year set in motion a circumstance where the UK's going to leave the European Union. It won't change that.

"What we want to have is a vote so the House can be behind and support the policy, which we are quite sure they will approve of when we get there."

Later on, Mr Davis also confirmed unskilled migration was likely to continue after Brexit.

In response to a question from Tory MP James Cartlidge (South Suffolk), Mr Davis said: "He's right that a level of unskilled migration is likely to continue.

"Where from, how it's controlled, will all be a matter for the new immigration policy, which will be under the control of this House.

"That's the point that I keep returning to.

"My job is to return the policy here, and then it's the job of this House to make the right decision in the British national interest, and I'm sure we will."

Labour's Wes Streeting (Ilford North) took issue with the idea that "no deal is better than a bad deal".

"What he is not being clear about is that no deal is a bad deal," he said.

"Given the Chancellor told the Treasury committee that the Prime Minister should enter the negotiations with the widest possible range of options available, why has the Government today chosen to rule out the best possible deal with the European Union, which is membership of the single market, membership of the customs union and, as a result, free-flowing goods and trade with the largest single market in the world on our own doorstep and access for British businesses to half a billion customers?"

Mr Davis replied: "I don't know where you were on the 23rd of June but the British people pretty much rejected that."

The SNP's Callum McCaig (Aberdeen South) poked fun at Mr Davis's negotiating skills.

He said: "No deal is better than a bad deal? I'm slightly perplexed by this.

"How could a negotiated deal possibly be worse than something that the Secretary of State refers to as a cliff edge?

"Is he really that bad at negotiation?"

Mr Davis was also asked how quickly the UK will be able to replace trade deals which the EU is in the process of finalising.

He said: "The expectation is for many of the deals, the most important ones for us, we will get, as it were, an immediate transfer and then we will start talking about improving the deals between us.

"Not all of the European trade deals have actually been that beneficial for Britain and some of these we could certainly improve."

The Brexit Secretary was also confident about securing trade deals once the UK leaves the EU.

He told MPs that Britain was currently constrained by rules that meant it could not do anything that jeopardises the European Union.

He added: "If the European Union currently has a trading deal in negotiation, we have to be very careful about how we impact on that, and of course we can't actually sign until the day we leave.

"But I've got a very strong suspicion that there will be a lot of things ready to sign that very next day."

Under questioning by MPs, Mr Davis appeared to rule out bringing forward a white paper outlining the Government's Brexit strategy.

The Brexit Secretary also announced in the Commons that he would be inviting regional mayors to have a discussion about Brexit after the local government elections in May.

Mr Davis suggested that Britain would be pursuing a unique new trading deal with the EU.

He told Labour's Stella Creasy (Walthamstow): "We have said from the beginning the relationship, the new partnership we want to have with the European Union will be unique, it will be brand new.

"It is unique in many ways, let me give her one example.

"In the trade deal that we're seeking to arrive at, we will be at the same standards of production, same standards applying to all of Britain that applies to the European Union now.

"There is no other trade deal in the world like that.

"The same thing applies to customs agreement.

"We are in a position where currently we have no customs barriers, why should we not have a completely frictionless one once we get to the end of the deal?"