THE First Minister said that her party had yet to decide if a second referendum will be included in the SNP's 2016 Holyrood election manifesto.
NICOLA STURGEON says the SNP has yet to decide if a second referendum on independence will be in its 2016 Holyrood election manifesto.
She added: "But whether it's the next Scottish election or a subsequent Scottish election - it's the decision of the SNP whether or not to include it in a manifesto, but it is the decision of the Scottish people whether to vote for that manifesto."
The announcement comes after former First Minister Alex Salmond said a second Scottish independence referendum was 'inevitable'.
Speaking on BBC1's Andrew Marr show, Salmond said that three issues are driving the move towards a referendum - the UK Government's alleged refusal to deliver a vow on home rule, the European Union issue and austerity.
The MP for Gordon said: "I think a second independence referendum is inevitable. The question is not the inevitability, it's the timing and that is very much in the hands of Nicola Sturgeon."
Scottish Secretary David Mundell has demanded clarity on the SNP's position on a second referendum.
Mundell, Scotland's only Conservative MP, was appointed to lead the Scotland Office in May and urged Nicola Sturgeon to make absolutely clear what her party's plans are amid several indications by nationalist MPs that there will be another referendum.
He told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme that it is not for the SNP to decide when Scotland wants another referendum.
He said: "I don't think that it's for the SNP to determine whether the people of Scotland want another referendum.
"Ultimately it will be for the people of Scotland to determine whether there is another referendum but it won't be for the SNP to tell the people of Scotland what they think on that issue."
He added: "What I want to see is the clarity of the SNP position. At the moment we've got Alex Salmond pushing for a second referendum, we've got Nicola Sturgeon not being very clear at all what her position is.
"I want them to be absolutely clear with us what their position is on having a second referendum. They've said repeatedly that there isn't going to be a second referendum at official level; now we see all these MPs, Alex Salmond himself pushing for a second referendum. Nicola Sturgeon needs to be absolutely clear.
"I don't think that it is for the SNP themselves to determine whether the people of Scotland are in favour of having another referendum."
The Scottish Secretary also revealed there are no contingency plans for the possibility of a further referendum on independence after next year's Holyrood elections.
With opinion polls pointing to the possibility of a SNP landslide in the Scottish Parliament elections, the move sparked speculation a second vote could be on the cards, despite Scots rejecting independence by a majority of 55% to 45% in last September's referendum.
THE Icelandic club's Twitter account posted a message urging the Queen and David Cameron to let Scotland go its own way following the recent visit by Celtic.