NICOLA Sturgeon is facing an embarrassing confrontation with Yes supporters demanding she hurry up and use her ‘triple lock’ mandate to call a second referendum.

In a further sign of division in the independence movement, scores of people are planning to demonstrate at the SNP conference in October to push for another vote.

They will urge the First Minister to “use the mandate” she sought and which, by her own benchmark, she secured at the general election for a new vote on the constitution.

Ms Sturgeon said last year that if the SNP won a majority of Scottish seats at Westminster it would convert her already “cast-iron” mandate for a referendum into a “triple lock” one.

The other parts of the triple lock were the SNP win in the 2016 Holyrood election and a vote by a majority of MSPs for the transfer of referendum powers in March 2017.

However the First Minister “reset” her plans after the SNP lost a third of its MPs in the general election, and is due to update Holyrood on her new timetable in October.

Senior SNP figures such as MP Pete Wishart and MSP Alex Neil have urged caution, downplaying the prospect of another plebiscite in the near future.

Many in the Yes movement are frustrated at the lack of momentum on a new referendum and want Ms Sturgeon to use the mandate before it expires at the 2021 Holyrood election.

So far 70 people have said they will attend the ‘Use The Mandate’ event at the SEC Centre in Glasgow, and 210 more have said they are interested.

The event is being organised by the Scotland Land of the Brave Saor Alba group, which has also helped organise recent marches calling for a second referendum.

Scottish Tory chief whip Maurice Golden said: “The SNP’s famous discipline is beginning to wilt, and it looks set to do so in spectacular style with a demo outside its own conference.

“Nicola Sturgeon has marched her independence diehards to the top of the hill and now they’re furious about being left in limbo.

“She should do what’s in Scotland’s best interests – march them back down and take another referendum off the table altogether.”

Scottish LibDem MSP Tavish Scott added: “Scotland’s public services face a heap of imminent challenges. Surely there are better things the SNP could be doing to boost the country than standing outside a pro-independence conference bemoaning the fact it’s not pro-independence enough.”

An SNP spokesperson said: “As the First Minister has made clear, she will provide an update this autumn. Given the Tories’ shambolic mishandling of things, the terms of Brexit are currently far from clear – but it is positive to see people from across the country continue to campaign passionately for independence.”

Scotland Land of the Brave Saor Alba did not respond to requests for comment.