Scotland's only Conservative MP has said the word of a foodbank volunteer in his constituency should be taken "with a pinch of salt" because he supports Scottish independence.

David Mundell dismissed evidence from MSPs, academics, charities and religious organisations of a link between welfare reform and the use of foodbanks at Holyrood's Welfare Reform Committee.

Mark Frankland, a foodbank, drugs and veterans volunteer who runs the Dumfries-based First Base Agency, provided evidence to the committee that people in Mr Mundell's constituency had their benefits cut because they had no access to broadband.

Around 300 benefit claimants in Upper Nithsdale, on the remote fringes of Dumfries, share just 15 public computers, according to Mr Frankland.

But Mr Mundell said Mr Frankland was a "very prominent Yes campaigner" and his words should be taken "with a pinch of salt" - prompting an outcry and calls of "shame" from SNP MSPs.

SNP MSP Joan McAlpine, whose South of Scotland Holyrood constituency surrounds Mr Mundell's Dumfriesshire Westminster seat, said: "Mark Frankland, who runs First Base, has written quite extensively about his work in the former mining villages of Upper Nithsdale.

"In each of those villages there are only 15 publicly available computers for 300 people who are on unemployment benefit or who are unemployed and are expected to make (job) searches by the Department of Work and Pensions.

"He then asks 'is it any wonder that they are failing to make the contacts and are being sanctioned?'."

Mr Mundell said: "Well, for reasons we won't go into in this committee it won't surprise you to know that I take what Mr Frankland said with a pinch of salt."

He recognised the "serious issue of the isolation of Upper Nithsdale", said residents have the option to travel to Cumnock rather than Dumfries to look for work, that Department for Work and Pensions officials visit the area regularly and called for "concrete examples" of broadband-related sanctions.

Ms McAlpine said: "I'm surprised you made that comment about Mr Frankland because he has been working in a voluntary capacity distributing food parcels for a number of years and helping veterans, so whatever his political views may be I'm sure you would pay credit to his charity work."

Mr Mundell said: "I think Mark has done a lot of very good work, particularly with drug users, but having been a very, very prominent Yes campaigner I don't think we could necessarily take everything he says as totally objective and I don't think that he himself would hold himself in that regard."

Ms McAlpine said: "I would take issue with that. I think that many people who work in foodbanks come from all sorts of different backgrounds and the people who have contributed evidence to this committee weren't all Yes campaigners or even Yes voters, but they are absolutely adamant that there is a link between foodbanks and sanctions."

Mr Mundell said: "I accept that, I have just caveated Mr Frankland's contribution, but that doesn't mean that I disrespect the contributions that others have made and I respect his contribution in a whole range of civic life in Dumfries and Galloway, but I don't necessarily accept that everything that he says is wholly objective."