NICOLA Sturgeon has accused the Prime Minister of taking a “leap in the dark” by triggering Brexit without knowing what it will mean for the economy and society.

The First Minister said Theresa May was still unable to answer “basic questions” about the far-reaching consequences of withdrawing the UK from the European Union.

Mrs May’s Article 50 letter to European Council president Donald Tusk referred just once to Scotland, saying she would “consult fully” on which repatriated powers should reside in Westminster and which “should be devolved to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland”.

She added: “It is the expectation of the Government that the outcome of this process will be a significant increase in the decision-making power of each devolved administration.”

The First Minister said that still left voters in the dark about the practicalities of Brexit.

She said: “Fully nine months after the EU referendum, the UK Government still cannot answer basic questions about what Brexit will mean for businesses, for the economy generally and for the type of society we live in.

“I wish the Prime Minister well in the negotiations which lie ahead, because a good Brexit deal for the UK is in Scotland’s interests.

“But the UK Government’s hard-line approach to Brexit is a reckless gamble, and it is clear, even at these very early stages, that the final deal is almost certain to be worse economically than the existing arrangements – and potentially much worse."

Referring to her plan for a second independence referendum which was backed by Holyrood on Tuesday, Ms Sturgeon added: "The people of Scotland must have the final say on their own future once the terms of Brexit are clear.”

Scottish Tory finance spokesman Murdo Fraser? emphasised Mrs May's desire for the UK to emerge as a “stronger, fairer, more united and more outward-looking country”.

He said: “The Prime Minister has made it clear that the UK Government expects Brexit to lead to a significant increase in decision-making powers for our own devolved parliament.

"This is a welcome statement. The SNP must now explain its own position. Nicola Sturgeon's view is that these powers should remain in Brussels, not here in the UK.

"If the First Minister really wants a powerhouse Scottish Parliament, the SNP needs to answer why it wants powers which are now coming back here to go back to the European Union."?

Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said the Article 50 letter was a “deeply divisive moment” which would have a “seismic impact” on Scotland’s economy and risk thousands of jobs.

She said: “I accept that those of us who backed Remain lost the EU referendum and the strength of our democracy rests on our respect for the will of the people.

“While I accept that the UK is leaving the EU, I am not prepared to stand by as Theresa May forges ahead with a plan for a settlement that will do incalculable damage.

“Leave voters didn’t back Brexit to make themselves poorer, but that is exactly what will happen under the current plans. The only thing more damaging for our economy than a Tory Brexit is the SNP’s reckless plan for independence.”

The Scottish Greens said triggering Brexit was an act of “economic and social vandalism” that signalled the end of the United Kingdom.

MSP Ross Greer said that by pushing ahead without UK-wide agreement, Mrs May had broken a promise, and shown the UK was clearly not the “family of nations” she claimed.

He said: “What the Tories have triggered will cause 80,000 lost jobs and a £2,000 drop in average incomes, according to independent analysis.

“This is economic and social vandalism, inflicted on Scotland by a Tory government we did not elect through a Brexit we voted against.

“It speaks volumes that Theresa May’s letter makes no mention of the environmental protections and workers’ rights that have made such a difference to Scots’ lives.

"The PM’s letter confirms a two-year timescale, so it's right for the people of Scotland to decide at that point which is more important: putting our own future in our own hands or being dragged along with a Hard Brexit we didn't vote for.

“Holyrood has voted for that choice to be put to the people and no Westminster government has the right to veto such a democratic decision."

Scottish LibDem leader Willie Rennie said Mrs May had opted for the “hardest and most divisive form of Brexit”, taking the UK out the single market before talks had even begun.

He said: “Tearing the United Kingdom, our businesses and our people out of the world’s biggest market, is an enormous threat to jobs, security and the environment.

“A new European Parliament report shows that the UK can still change its mind on Brexit.

“If Theresa May’s deal is not good enough, the people of the UK should have the chance to say so. Democracy didn’t end on 23rd of June - and it hasn’t ended today either.”

Gordon MacIntyre-Kemp, head of the pro-independence Business for Scotland group, said: “Scotland voted to remain in the EU, our businesses need access to the single market and they need the skills that EU migrants bring to help our economy grow and thrive.

“The Westminster Government seems to be heading for a hard Brexit that will cost tens of thousands of jobs, knock billions off of our economy, create rapid inflation, increase borrowing and the deficit, damage international exports and cut real wages.

“The damage to the UK economy will be just as great. Theresa May’s hard Brexit plan quite simply has destroyed any perceived economic advantage to Scotland remaining in the UK.”