Nicola Sturgeon has declared that the SNP's 35 MPs at Westminster will vote for a so-called "people's vote" on the outcome of Brexit negotiations.

Her announcement, as her party's conference opens in Glasgow, came as she claimed the "shambles of Brexit" has strengthened the case for Scottish independence.

Asked in a TV interview about the prospect of no deal on Brexit, she said: "No doubt calls for a second referendum would grow in those circumstances.

"I've said before we wouldn't stand in the way of a second referendum. I think SNP MPs would undoubtedly vote for that proposition."

The First Minister was speaking after a march in support of independence saw thousands of people pack the length of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh.


Organisers of the "All Under One Banner" march, from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood, claimed tens of thousands took part, though there was no official confirmation.

The SNP's Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, told Sky News that Scotland has to have the right to vote on independence for a second time should there be a similar renewed vote on Brexit.

Speaking on Sophy Ridge on Sunday, he said: "If there's a people's vote, we need to make sure that our position is protected.

"In the 2016 Scottish election the SNP won that election with a manifesto commitment that if there were a material change of circumstances then we reserve the right to call an independence referendum." says @IanBlackfordMP on Brexit deal outcomes pic.twitter.com/X4IyclUppl — Ridge on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) October 7, 2018

"We must have the right - if we are being dragged out of Europe, if we are being dragged out of the single market and customs union - that we have that ability to determine our own future."

The SNP Conference opens with the party claiming it has become the second largest in the UK, pushing the Conservatives into third place.

Ahead of the conference, Ms Sturgeon said: "At this most crucial time in the UK's negotiations on its future relations with the EU, Labour and the Tories have fallen apart into bitter faction fighting.

"The people of Scotland deserve better than the despair, incompetence and chaos of Westminster.

"The shambles of Brexit makes the case for independence more compelling than ever - with Westminster ignoring Scotland's voice and interests and undermining devolution with a power grab on the Scottish Parliament."

"A majority of people would support a independent Scotland in the likelihood of a hard Brexit" says @IanBlackfordMP pic.twitter.com/PW22191qi5 — Ridge on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) October 7, 2018

Despite Ms Sturgeon's claim, however, no debate in the main hall on a second independence referendum is scheduled at the three-day conference.

Instead, the party is expected to focus on domestic issues such as the cost of living, improving the NHS and boosting jobs and wages.

In her TV interview, Ms Sturgeon said she would spell out the case for another independence referendum after an EU summit on October 18-19 or an emergency summit in November if that proves necessary.

"I will set out what I think the next steps are when we are at the end of this phase of negotiations," she said

"Whether I like it or not - or whether anybody likes it or not - the future of EU/UK relationship is the context in which Scotland will decide that question of independence."

She added: "I will set out my views on the next steps at that stage, if that's when Theresa May comes back with the deal.

"It could be later this month, it could be November, it could be December."

But the First Minister is facing accusations of dithering over a second independence referendum and is under growing pressure to make an early commitment to hold one.

In his latest Russia Today TV show, for which he has been condemned by many in his own party, Ms Sturgeon's predecessor Alex Salmond accused the SNP leadership of being "cautious" on a second referendum.

The former first minister will not be attending the Glasgow conference, having resigned from the party in August following allegations of sexual misconduct, but his supporters claim that on the independence issue "the ghost of Alex Salmond" is hovering over the conference.