Davidson: May must reach out to her rivals

three. The First Minister also said she would “reflect carefully” on the result – a promise that would have been undermined by the SNP actively fundraising for a fresh ballot.

Ms Sturgeon appeared tetchy when asked about another referendum yesterday, telling the media at Westminster: “I have said I will reflect on the outcome of the election and I will do that carefully and in discussion with colleagues across the SNP.

“I won’t do it to a timetable dictated by headline-hungry journalists or based on any overly simplistic analysis of the election.”

Tory MSP Maurice Golden said: “The fact the SNP have stopped fundraising through this website shows they are in retreat when it comes to a second independence referendum.

“With senior members of their party still refusing to rule out another vote, they need to come to terms with the result of the election and take it off the table altogether.”

A Scottish Labour spokesman said: “What an absolute utter shambles from the Nationalists.

“No-one believes this bare faced lie that the fundraising efforts were for the General Election – the website was set up long before it was called and was explicitly for a second referendum.

“The reality is the SNP’s plan for a divisive second referendum took a battering last Thursday and SNP politicians now don’t know if they are dropping plans for a referendum or not.”

Ms Sturgeon is also under pressure to remove her husband, Peter Murrell, as the SNP’s chief executive, amid criticism of the party’s campaign and his ability to be objective.

Former SNP justice secretary Kenneth MacAskill has said Ms Sturgeon should appoint a deputy to Mr Murrell with a view to replacing him within a year.

He said Mr Murrell’s running of the SNP was compromised by his marriage to Ms Sturgeon, saying: “Even it is subconscious, it must affect his judgment.”

Meanwhile, Edinburgh East MP Tommy Sheppard has thrown his hat into the ring to replace Mr Robertson.

Mr Sheppard, who has only been an MP since 2015, hopes to fill the shoes of experienced Mr Robertson after his loss on Thursday in Moray left a vacancy for a leader in the Commons.

He tweeted last night: “Pleased to say I have decided to seek nomination for @ theSNP Westminster group leader.”