A FORMER SNP MP has criticised the party’s leadership for failing to take action on a future independence referendum.

Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh said Nicola Sturgeon’s imminent announcements on another vote “have been trailed so often that no-one is taking them seriously now”.

It comes after the First Minister repeated her insistence that she would update Holyrood on her plans “in the next few weeks” during a recent trip to the US.

Ms Ahmed-Sheikh, who represented Ochil and South Perthshire between 2015 and 2017, took a swipe at the delays in her column for The National newspaper.

She wrote: “Watching on as Westminster ties itself in knots and doing nothing cannot be the real answer.

"Imminent announcements on indyref2 have been trailed so often that no-one is taking them seriously now.

“Indications of growing support for the SNP as in this YouGov poll need to be capitalised on and developed.

"To paraphrase Theresa May ‘now IS the time’ to be presenting coherent plans and campaigning for change.

“After all, as a Remain-voting country, we must surely all be agreed that Scotland deserves better than the chaos of Westminster where our interests are at the bottom of the pile. Now is the time for action – action this day.”

Last month, Ms Sturgeon said she would give an update on the timing of another independence referendum in a “matter of weeks”.

It came ten days after she insisted she hoped to set out the timing “very soon”.

The First Minister has repeatedly delayed her independence update because of Brexit, causing frustration among some supporters.