Stewart McDonald says the first minister's plan for a de facto referendum will not deliver independence.
Alternatively, the SNP could decide to use the next Scottish Parliament election in 2026 in the same way.
Speaking to the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme he said polling suggested that most people in Scotland were opposed to the de facto referendum plan. He said: "I think part of the reason why we are stuck at the moment and that there is this miasma of impatience - impatience that I share entirely - is because support for independence isn't yet clearly the sustained majority opinion in Scotland.
Nicola Sturgeon doesn't just have opposition leaders to contend with. This week she has also been taking flak from SNP members on gender reform, as well as from her old mentor-turned-foe Alex Salmond. To be clear, the first minister remains very much in charge of a party which remains miles ahead of its competitors in Scotland.
The first minister's plan to use the next general election as a de facto referendum was a response to the Supreme Court ruling that she did not have the power to hold a vote on independence this year.
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