MSPs will today be urged to censure SNP economy secretary Keith Brown for failing to check out a touted £10bn Chinese investment package that proved a mirage.

Scottish LibDem leader Willie Rennie will table the censure motion on the first anniversary of Nicola Sturgeon signing a now infamous deal with two controversial Chinese firms.

The First Minister signed a memorandum of understanding with SinoFortone and the state-backed Chinese Railway No3 Engineering Group (CR3).

Sinfortone suggested it was looking to bring up to £10bn if investment to Scotland in housing, energy and other infrastructure.

However the deal was dogged by controversy over CR3’s human rights record, while SinoFortone’s promised investment across the UK never materialised.

In August, the Scottish Government finally pulled out of the deal, which had become known in China as “the Scottish shambles”.

Mr Rennie said SNP ministers had failed to carry out basic due diligence on the firms.

After the signing, it emerged Norway's sovereign wealth fund had blacklisted CRG3's parent company over corruption concerns, and Amnesty International said it was "seriously concerned" over the state company's human rights record in Africa.

SinoFortone’s only tangible investment in the UK also turned out to be a Cotswolds pub.

Businessman Sir Richard Heygate, who helped front the deal to the Scottish Government, later admitted SinoFortone's much-hyped promises had proven to be “all b******s”.

Mr Rennie said: “It has been a year since the First Minister signed a deal with SinoFortone and CR3. The connections to human rights abuses is something that should have been identified before pen was the put to paper.

"Recently the front man behind the deal revealed the company he was representing had no capital strength behind it. Essentially this SNP Government was duped by men with sharp suits and a knighthood.

“Through the SNP’s action, the reputation for Scotland as an ethical place to do business has been damaged. We need assurances that the Scottish Government will do things differently. Our government should not be ignoring the human rights record of companies and signing up to agreements with people they know little about.

“The reputation of Cabinet Secretary Keith Brown is in tatters. He should issue an apology and be censured for his failure."

A spokesman for Mr Brown said: “This is staggering hypocrisy from the LibDems – when they were in office at Westminster they aggressively pursued business links with China, saying that ‘no subject will be off limits’.

“At no point did the Scottish Government enter into any legal or financial commitments with Sinofortone and no agreements have been reached on any investment.

“It speaks volumes that on the day the Prime Minister will trigger Brexit, by far the biggest threat to jobs and Scotland’s economy, LibDem MSPs would rather use their time in Parliament to try and score cheap political points.”