ONE of the longest serving SNP MPs has called on his party to stop acting as the “Scottish Stop Brexit Party” and renew efforts to achieve independence.

Writing in The National, Angus MacNeil warned attempts to bring about a second EU referendum or a no confidence motion in the government were “rabbit holes” the SNP could disappear into at the expense of losing sight of its main goal.

READ MORE: The SNP must focus on independence – not stopping Brexit

Independence is the core policy of the SNP. People’s Votes and even votes of no confidence are merely rabbit holes to get lost in, during this “moment for us all”, he said.

“The SNP and Scottish Government now have to put Scotland first. They’ve done what they reasonably can to fight Brexit, it has even dominated the SNP’s twitter feed and that of the party’s leading lights, eclipsing the issue of independence.

“Indeed in the recent past the Tories tweet more on independence than the SNP and you can be certain that the Tories do it negatively."

Referring to a poll published at the weekend which showed rising support for independence, he added: “Despite the predominance of negative messaging, support for independence looks to be at 59% in the event of a no deal Brexit. However, we must always remember that we are the SNP – the Scottish National Party – not the SSBP – the Scottish Stop Brexit Party.”

MacNeil’s intervention comes as May faces the prospect of a no-confidence motion from both Tory backbenchers and a separate motion in her government from opposition MPs.