NICOLA Sturgeon has confirmed a vote for Scottish independence could be reversed within a few years if the country changed its mind.

The First Minister said she thought such an outcome was unlikely, but acknowledged democracy meant people would be entitled to cancel a Yes vote though another referendum.

The previously unreported comments, made in Berlin on Wednesday, are likely to fuel calls for a confirmatory vote being made a precondition of holding Indyref2.

They also suggest the aftermath of any Yes vote could be as politically turbulent as the one following Brexit, as Unionists could try to have the result overturned.

Ms Sturgeon said: “As soon as you say a referendum result is irreversible, by definition it’s not democratic.

“Because if people change their mind, or if circumstances change, then if they’re not allowed to change the decision, then it’s not democratic.”

Asked directly if a vote for independence could be reversed by a later vote for the Union, she accepted it was a possibility, adding: “It’s up to people to decide the future they want.”

The Scottish LibDems and Tories said it was a recipe for endless “chaos”.

READ MORE: Paul Hutcheon: In indyref2, the stakes would be so much higher for Unionists

Ms Sturgeon has said she wants another vote on the constitution next year, but the UK Tory Government has so far refused to grant Holyrood the necessary powers to hold it.

Labour has said it is open to a second referendum, provided Nationalist parties win a fresh and unambiguous mandate, with some Labour MPs also pushing for a confirmatory vote on the outcome of independence negotiations between Edinburgh and London.

Ms Sturgeon’s remarks are fully consistent with her desire to revisit the No result of the 2014 referendum and the Brexit result of the 2016 referendum.

However they will dismay parts of the Yes movement, including some SNP MPs, who warned her not to set a precedent by backing a second Brexit referendum in case it opened the door to Unionist challenges to independence.

The SNP Government’s 2013 White Paper on Independence was silent on the possibility of a further referendum, declaring that independence would follow 18 months of negotiations.

Senior SNP politicians also try to avoid hypothetical questions about a Yes vote possibly being overturned.

But Ms Sturgeon, in Germany to meet politicians and business leaders and receive a media prize for being a “voice of reason” on Brexit, was unable to escape her own logic on the issue.

READ MORE: Jeremy Corbyn will not allow indyref2 in ‘formative years’ of Labour government

At a press conference at the German Council on Foreign Relations, she was asked by a Czech news agency reporter if there would be a third independence referendum if she lost Indyref2.

After saying she thought Scotland would back independence, she said: “No politician can decide that a country no longer has the ability to choose its own future. Somebody in the Brexit context in the UK last week or the week before made the point that referendums can either be irreversible or they can be democratic, they can’t be both.

“Because as soon as you say a referendum result is irreversible, by definition it’s not democratic.

“Because if people change their mind, or if circumstances change, then if they’re not allowed to change the decision, then it’s not democratic.

“So at the end of the day, it’s up to people to decide the future of Scotland, as it is up to people to decide the future of any country.”

When asked if that logic applied to independence, she did not dispute it. She was asked: “So that would mean, if the Scottish people decide for independence, there could also be a next referendum in a few years for the Scottish people to decide against independence again?

“That would be OK with you?”

Ms Sturgeon replied: “Democracy’s not conditional. It’s not for politicians to decide the limits that they place on democracy. It’s up to people to decide the future they want.

“But no country, to my knowledge, that has become independent from the UK... and I think since the end of the Second World War I think there have been several countries that have become independent from the UK, none of them have decided to change their minds and go back the way, and I don’t think that it is likely that Scotland would do that either.”

Scottish LibDem leader Willie Rennie said: “SNP supporters will go bananas to hear the First Minister is lining up Indyref3 as well as Indyref2. We want to make this chaos stop.”

Tory MSP Adam Tomkins said: “If people are sick of the prospect of Indyref2, they’ll be even more angry to hear the First Minister on Indyrefs3 and 4. Participating in and agitating for referendums is the only thing that keeps Nicola Sturgeon in business.

“So it’s perhaps unsurprising that she never wants the cycle to end. There is one solution to this problem – take the threat of a referendum off the table altogether, then no-one need worry about the status of the outcome. People in Scotland are sick of referendums, and will be concerned to hear the First Minister’s appetite for more.”

The SNP were asked for comment.