John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, was speaking at an event in Edinburgh on Tuesday. Today he reaffirmed his pledge to allow an independence referendum

Labour’s splits over Scottish independence burst into the open again yesterday as John McDonnell reaffirmed his pledge to sanction a second referendum in the face of an intensifying backlash from his party.

Despite being told by the leader of Scottish Labour in a meeting yesterday morning that there was “no case” for another referendum and condemned by more than a dozen Westminster candidates, Mr McDonnell refused to back down.

The shadow chancellor, who is Jeremy Corbyn’s closest political ally, dismayed his colleagues in Scotland on Tuesday when he made the significant shift of policy at an event in Edinburgh.

His intervention came hours after Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish first minister and SNP leader, opened the door to a “progressive alliance” to oust Boris Johnson from