A CALL for the Liberal Democrats to explore all options for Scotland in the wake of the UK vote to leave the European Union has been rejected at the party’s conference.

Instead, activists at the party’s autumn conference in Dunfermline, Fife, backed an amended motion making clear they should “explore all options, except independence, that may allow Scotland to retain the benefits of EU membership”.

While the UK as a whole voted to leave the European Union in June, 62 per cent of Scottish voters backed staying in Europe.

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Scottish Liberal Democrats’ leader Willie Rennie had already distanced himself from the motion, which had urged the party to consider “all options” for Scotland’s future post-Brexit. That came after the Tories seized on its wording as evidence the LibDems might change their stance on a second Scottish independence referendum.

Former MEP Elspeth Attwooll had claimed the motion was “not about pandering to the SNP or a second independence referendum”. But leading figures within the party spoke out against that.

Alex Cole-Hamilton, the MSP for Edinburgh Western, responded: “This party fought the Scottish Parliamentary election on the platform of unequivocal opposition to a second referendum under any circumstances.

“If we were to pass this motion unamended how could we ever be expected to be trusted again?”

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Alistair Carmichael, the sole remaining Scottish Liberal Democrats’ MP and former Scottish secretary, told the conference: “You don’t beat the forces of nationalism by offering the people more nationalism.

“You beat nationalism with openness, tolerance, and unity.