Nicola Sturgeon under pressure to ditch referendum plans as she claims SNP mandate is '˜beyond doubt'

Addressing the Scottish Parliament today, the SNP leader revealed her plans for a referendum have been put on hold until Brexit talks are complete so she can focus on securing the best possible deal for the Scottish people.

However, she stated it was still her intention to offer voters “a choice over the country’s future” once the impact of Britain’s exit from the EU becomes clear.

And despite losing 21 seats at the general election, she claimed the party’s mandate for a referendum was “beyond doubt”, suggesting it was purely a matter of deciding “when”.

The announcement met with criticism from the Scottish Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem leaders, who accused Ms Sturgeon of ignoring the message sent by voters on June 9 and adding to the uncertainty permeating British politics.

Labour’s Kezia Dugdale claimed any real threat of a second referendum was “dead”, while Tory MSP Ruth Davidson urged Ms Sturgeon to take the option “off the table” for the remainder of the Parliament.

“She should just give the country some certainty... most people simply don’t want this brought back any time soon,” Ms Davidson said. “None of the questions that are raised by Brexit are answered by ripping Scotland out of our own union of nations, our biggest market and our closest friends.

“She appears to be in denial about her mistakes over this last year. And as a result, [she] is leaking credibility and confidence in her leadership by the hour.”

The SNP won the Scottish Assembly’s backing for a second independence vote just weeks before Theresa May called an early election. At the time, Ms Sturgeon made it clear she would only hold the referendum once “the nature of the changes... made inevitable by Brexit become clear”.

Speaking today, she indicated these plans had not changed, but in the meantime, she will “redouble” her efforts to secure the best possible Brexit deal for Scotland.

She added that she intends to build “maximum support” for the proposals her party set out at the end of 2016 – which argued for both the UK and Scotland to remain part of the European single market with “substantial new powers” for Holyrood.

“There is no doubt that the Scottish Government has a mandate to offer the people of Scotland that choice within this term of Parliament,” she said. “The mandate we have is beyond doubt, but deciding exactly how and when to exercise it is a matter of judgment.”

Responding to the news, the Prime Minister echoed Ms Davidson’s calls for the plans to be dropped. “We have always been clear that now is not the time for a second independence referendum and that remains our position,” her spokesman added.