A Southampton MP has said that he did not defy his constituents when he voted against the bill triggering Article 50 to start the Brexit process.

Alan Whitehead, MP for Southampton Test, said data collected on the night of last year’s referendum vote by his team showed that his constituency voted narrowly for ‘Remain’ at 50.6 per cent.

Shadow energy minister Mr Whitehead said: “This fact doesn’t change my logic for voting the way I did - however it does contradict the claim that I in any way defied my constituents.

READ: Southampton MP defends decision to defy constituents over Brexit >>>

“The vote on the second reading of the Government’s Article 50 bill was not about whether parliament wanted a rerun of the referendum, but on whether Article 50 should be triggered now, and if so on what basis.

“I do not think that rushing into triggering Article 50 without clarity on what we will be doing is in our country’s best interest, and I was not prepared to stand by and allow us to go down what I regard as a potentially very dangerous path for the UK.”