JEREMY Hunt has suggested he would block a second independence referendum as Prime Minister even if the SNP win an outright majority at the next Holyrood election.

The Foreign Secretary repeatedly refused to rule out the possibility, and said the SNP “need to be true to what they promised” about the 2014 result settling the issue for a generation.

He also suggested the First Minister was slacking over preparations for a no-deal Brexit, something her critics accuse of her doing in order to hasten independence.

Mr Hunt said the SNP Government had been “very disappointing” in its preparations for no-deal, and he “would like to see more focus on that from Nicola Sturgeon”.

He also said he would “maintain the Barnett formula” funding the Scottish Government.

Mr Hunt made the comments in a media briefing after meeting Tory activists in Perth ahead of the sole Scottish hustings in the Tory leadership contest.

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Last month, Mr Hunt said that if became PM he would set “three stringent challenges to the SNP” before they could hold another independence referendum.

The first, also set by Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, was that the SNP would have to win an outright majority in 2021 on a manifesto commitment to hold indyref2.

The others were the SNP clarifying their position on the future currency of an independent Scotland, and ruling out a Catalan-style wildcat referendum.

However, in Perth, Mr Hunt appeared to take an even harder line, refusing to say if he would grant a referendum even if the first of his conditions was met.

Asked if he would grant Ms Sturgeon a Section 30 power to hold another referendum, he said he would refuse “in the most British and polite way”.

Pressed on the timescale and whether he would block a second referendum if the SNP won an outright majority at Holyrood in 2021, he said: “I’ve made it very clear that I’m a Unionist with every fibre in my being, so if there is a request for a referendum the answer will be a polite No.”

Asked whether he was a democrat as well a Unionist, he replied: “I am a democrat.”

He was then asked: “If the SNP, on a manifesto pledge of holding a referendum, win an outright majority, would you say No to them in those circumstances?”

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Mr Hunt replied: “I’m a democrat, and I remember that in that independence referendum, the SNP very clearly said that this would settle the outcome for a generation, and I think they need to be true to what they promised the Scottish electorate, just as we are being true to what we promised the British electorate in delivering Brexit.”

Mr Hunt said the Scottish Government had been “very disappointing in their preparations for a no-deal Brexit, which none of us want, but any responsible government or authority in the United Kingdom should be taking seriously, because there is that risk.”

Pushed for more detail, he said: “To date, as I’ve been watching the no-dela preparations, I would like to see more focus on that from Nicola Sturgeon. This isn’t the time to go into details, but I think they know, and we know the areas where more could be done.”

SNP Finance Secretary Derek Mackay last year diverted £10m of £37m in Brexit-related Barnett formula consequentials into other spending areas, and said he was unable to identify how much of a further £54.7m for 2019/20 would go on Brexit.

Ruling out including the First Minister in his negotiating team with the EU if he is PM, he said: “I want a Brexit that works for the Union. I’m a passionately committed Unionist, and Nicola Sturgeon is trying to break up that Union.

“So I don’t believe that her role in any Brexit negotiations would be one that would help further or strengthened the Union, because she is fundamentally against that.

“I want to be clear that I would work constructively and positively and with an open-mind with the First Minister on every single issue that brings Scotland forward, but not on the issue of independence, where I profoundly disagree.”

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford said: “This high-handed arrogance from Jeremy Hunt may appeal to the Tory faithful but it certainly won’t appeal to the rest of Scotland.

“No wonder support for the Tories has plummeted in Scotland - and no wonder support for independence is continuing to increase.

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“The mandate to hold another independence referendum is not a matter of opinion – it is a matter of fact.”

He went on: “Jeremy Hunt’s comments on a no-deal Brexit are gobsmacking – only a few days ago he admitted he was prepared to take the UK out of the EU without a deal, despite the enormous economic and social damage that this could inflict on the country, and now he is claiming we are not doing enough to fix his mess.

“This is like an arsonist setting a building on fire and then complaining that the firefighters aren’t doing enough to tackle the blaze.

“The SNP Scottish Government continues with its preparations to protect against the threats from Brexit, but no amount of preparation or funding can completely mitigate all the impacts of leaving the European Union - particularly a catastrophic no-deal Brexit.”