Nicola Sturgeon has branded Douglas Ross "utterly pathetic" during a fiery debate on independence at First Minister's Questions today.
The First Minister and the Scottish Conservative leader clashed following reports that senior EU officials had warned that an independent Scotland would need to sign-up to the Euro if it wanted to rejoin the political union.
Sturgeon announced earlier this month that Scotland would seek to join EU if voters backed ending the Union - but would eventually look to launch its own currency.
Ross accused the SNP leader of "abandoning the pound" and claimed her plan had been "rubbished" by EU chiefs in Brussels.
Sturgeon hit back saying Ross's points were not valid as other nations already in the EU have not adopted the single currency.
She added: "The President of the European Commission when he said, and let me quote it again, 'there is no intention of forcing countries to join the Euro if they are not willing to do so'.
"That was in 2017, not 27 years ago. The direct named quotes of the people that I have quoted today and the hard evidence from other EU member states disproves the point that Douglas Ross is seeking to make today - it is utterly pathetic and desperate.
"If he wants to put it to the test let's allow the Scottish people to look at all of these things and make that decision in a referendum."
Ross accused Sturgeon of using quotes during FMQs about countries that are already in the EU and not about nations looking to join.
He said: "It's a quote from someone that says the country seeking to enter into the European Union doesn't have to join the Euro, because all her select quotes have been about countries that are already in the EU.
"When we need to focus on funding on our frontline here in Scotland, the Scottish Government has poured resources and taxpayers money into an economic paper that the EU rubbished in less than a fortnight."
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