SCOTTISH Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has urged First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to ditch the "threat" of a second referendum and focus on governance, adding that she was disappointed by the SNP's "failure to listen" on the economy.
Energy is being "diverted into an endless political campaign", she said, with Ms Sturgeon's list of legislation serving as "a warm-up act to nudge the independence caravan another few inches along the road".
"I do not subscribe to the view that we are helpless to act in the face of Brexit - nor do I think that breaking up a union worth four times more to Scotland than the EU is going to help matters very much," she said.
"I said two weeks ago I wanted a new type of Scottish Government and what I mean is one which no longer asks - how will this boost independence? But one that asks - how are we growing the country?"
Ms Davidson said her party wanted to see more opportunities for Scottish firms to export abroad, major new investment in home-energy efficiency, a "genuinely ambitious" housebuilding programme and cuts to business rates.
"All these measures are important," she said.
"The single biggest economic lever that the SNP could pull right now to help the country grow would be to remove the threat of a second referendum.
"That is what is holding us back. That is stifling investment in our firms. Taking away that lead weight on our country's prospects is one thing the First Minister could do right now.
"She might have hid it in a throwaway line at the end of her speech, but the bill sits in the programme for government as a direct threat to our nation's economic growth."
Davidson made her comments as the First Minister outlined 14 Bills which her SNP administration at Holyrood will introduce - including four pieces of legislation making use of new powers that have just been devolved to Edinburgh.
The SNP leader also used her legislative programme to set out "how we will seek to protect Scotland's interests, particularly our economic interests, in the wake of the EU referendum".
While almost two-thirds of Scots (62 per cent) opted to remain part of the European Union (EU) in June, the UK as a whole voted to leave.
Ms Sturgeon said again she is "determined to pursue all options to protect our place in Europe".
As a result, she said her programme for government "makes clear that we will consult on a draft Referendum Bill, so that it is ready for immediate introduction if we conclude that independence is the best or only way to protect Scotland's interests".
The programme lays out the Bills that are to be brought before the Scottish Parliament between now and the end of June next year, with Ms Sturgeon saying it represents the "hard graft" of turning the SNP's manifesto from the May Holyrood elections into reality.
As well as investing in "vital infrastructure", she stressed ministers are "stepping up our support for business in the wake of the referendum".
The three-year Scottish Growth Scheme will see the government work to unlock investment for the private sector following the uncertainty cause by the vote to leave the EU.
Investment guarantees and some loans, of up to £5 million, will be available to small and medium-sized firms who would not otherwise be able to expand because of restricted access to finance.
"The proposal for a Scottish Growth Fund is an exceptional response to an exceptional economic challenge," the First Minister said
"This is a half-billion pound vote of confidence in Scottish business, Scottish workers and the Scottish economy.
"We are determined to build an economy where everyone has a fair chance to contribute to growth and where everyone can share in the benefits of growth."
The Scottish Government has already set up a new business information service to provide advice and support for firms worried about Brexit while a post-referendum business network is being set up with the Scotland Office, Scottish Trades Union Congress and business organisations to help shape future policy and support.
As well as this, £3.5 million is being invested in new "innovation and investment hubs" in London, Dublin and Brussels in a bid to help attract more businesses to Scotland and help domestic firms expand overseas.
These are "objectives that are all the more important in the new circumstances we face" post-Brexit, Ms Sturgeon said.
Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said the programme lacked ambition and failed to address the "big questions" Scotland faces in areas such as public services and jobs.
"Over the past decade, this Parliament has become more and more powerful, but the Government's programme has become less and less ambitious," she said.
"The First Minister and the SNP have had nearly a decade. They now have another five years.
"Let this be five years where focusing on jobs, public services and our economy rank as highly as the SNP's fight for independence."
She added: "Let me be absolutely clear. She will find no support on these benches for a second independence referendum.
"Labour will continue to make the argument that we have since the EU referendum: That we are better maintaining our relationship with the EU and continuing as part of the United Kingdom.
"That's the will of the people of Scotland on both issues and it is a will my party shares."
