A SENIOR MP has said the SNP must not “dither” like the Jacobites and should try to achieve independence without a 2014-style referendum if necessary.

In a coded swipe at the First Minister,  Angus Brendan MacNeil said Brexit had created an opportunity for independence “here and now”, but the window was limited.

He said the SNP would have to consider an alternative route if the UK government refused to allow a legally binding vote through a so-called Section 30 order.

He said: “If we can’t make this under a Section 30 order, we have to make it another way.“

The SNP has always rejected a unilateral referendum of the kind held in Catalonia, as it would not be legally binding and would be likely to end up mired in a court dispute.

Mr MacNeil’s comments followed MP Joanna Cherry QC claiming that independence could be delivered through a “democratic event” such as an election, not a referendum.

Both Mr MacNeil and Ms Cherry’s comments are at odds with the official SNP line, which is that the referendum of 2014 was the “gold standard” for any future decision.

However the pair also reflect the frustration in the party about the increasingly slim chance chance of Theresa May or any another British PM granting a second referendum.

Mr MacNeil told delegates there was an opportunity “here and now” for independence because of Brexit and the window would last until the next Holyrood election in 2021.

He said the SNP must not “dither” like the Jacobite army which got as far south as Derby as it marched on London in 1745, then gave up and turned back.

Under the Edinburgh Agreement which underpinned the 2014 referendum, Westminster granted Holyrood the temporary power needed to hold the vote via a Section 30 order.

Mr MacNeil,  the MP for the Western Isles, said: “We have to be very cognisant of the fact that the opportunity for independence that is arising at the moment because of Brexit.

“It is not needed to wait for a generation or whatever, the opportunity is here and now.

“Because despite our best efforts of trying to keep the United Kingdom within the European Union, trying to keep the United Kingdom within the customs union and the single market, they have steamed onwards, the Tory government, for the cliff, as fast as they can.

“But we have a 26-month window to do something about it. We cannot know the exact timing… but we do know the window is likely to be March 2019 to March 2021.

“If we can’t make this under a Section 30 order, we have to make it another way.

“We cannot dither at this point. We cannot be like the Jacobites in Derby and let the opportunity pass as it did in 1745 and 1746 for them. We have to move forward.

“Independence is on 50 to 52% and you ain’t seen nothing yet by the time we get going.”

He added: “As Theresa May said of the UK, we joined as nation states and we therefore must be free as a nation state to make the choice to leave.

“Well, Theresa May, if that applies to the UK and the European Union, it most certainly applies to Scotland in the United Kingdom.

Pamela Nash, chief executive of the pro-UK Scotland in Union group, said: "This is yet more evidence that the SNP is determined to ignore the views of Scotland in its relentless pursuit of independence.

“People don't want a divisive and unnecessary second independence referendum, so senior SNP figures are desperately trying to find a dangerous alternative route to independence. Their obsession is incredibly damaging for the country, and it's time the SNP got back to the day job.

“Nicola Sturgeon must be in despair at the ridiculous comments being made by her parliamentarians at this conference.”

Mr MacNeil’s remarks came in spite of Nicola Sturgeon being forced to restate her party’s commitment to the referendum process used in 2014.

On Sunday, SNP MP Joanna Cherry said a “democratic event” such as a general election could be enough to deliver independence, and there need not be a referendum.

Asked whether she agreed with Ms Cherry, Ms Sturgeon told BBC Radio Scotland: “My view is, as it has always been, that the people of Scotland will decide the question of independence in a referendum. That's the party position, that remains the party position."

But she continued: "In defence of Joanna, I think it's a bit rich for the opposition to have a go at SNP members for speculating about how we might be able to express our views on independence in circumstances where, in a fundamentally anti-democratic fashion, we have got opposition parties suggesting that they would block the ability to choose in a referendum."