Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has compared nationalists who continue to seek independence to Gollum from Lord of the Rings.
He questioned whether the SNP would be “torn apart by the lust for the ring of independence” or if it would work with other parties to devolve more powers.
In his keynote speech to the Lib Dem conference in Glasgow, Mr Rennie praised what he called the “grand alliance” who secured the referendum No vote last month.
The Mid Scotland and Fife MSP also claimed that “everyone is now on board” with his party’s plan for federalism, despite Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson ruling out so-called “devo max” last week.
On the SNP, Mr Rennie called on the party to abandon further bids for independence.
“Britain will never be the same again but I can assure you that the Liberal Democrats will never support a nationalist effort to create an unstable form of devolution as a ticking timebomb deliberately designed to deliver independence,” he told delegates.
“So there is a test for the SNP. Will they be like Gollum in Lord of the Rings, torn apart by the lust for the ring of independence?
“Or will they work constructively with others to create Home Rule that is stable, as well as powerful, inside the United Kingdom?”
Mr Rennie said future devolution must take place within Scotland, as well as from Westminster to Holyrood.
“Change will not be satisfied if it is restricted to a journey from London to Edinburgh,” he said.
“That journey of change must carry on right up to the tip of Shetland, to the foot of Galloway and to the heart of Aberdeen.”
Mr Rennie also put pressure on first minister-in-waiting Nicola Sturgeon to make changes.
“How different a first minister is she really going to be?” he asked.
“She’s a fan of Birgitte Nyborg, the liberal prime minister from the TV series Borgen.
“Is Nicola a Borgen liberal or a Salmond nationalist?
“The moment of truth is here. Will the real Nicola Sturgeon please stand up?”