Speaking in Banff, Mr Stevenson said,
“The detail of the work necessary to organise a fair and trustworthy referendum has been greater than I had anticipated. In fairness my colleague Alex Salmond MP warned me that I might have bitten off more than I could chew. But I am now in position to move ahead.
“Obviously we would all have preferred to have moved sooner and with knowledge of Tesco's detailed proposals. But we should not wait any longer.
“Of course the result of the vote cannot bind the Council or Scottish Executive who will have to make the decisions. But it will be a significant input to their decision-making process.
“The sensible dates would seem to be a Friday and Saturday towards the end of January. We need a suitable question to ask and I putting up my own suggestion so that people can respond with feedback.
“Failing any significant change in circumstances, the referendum is now on.”
“Obviously we would all have preferred to have moved sooner and with knowledge of Tesco's detailed proposals. But we should not wait any longer.
“Of course the result of the vote cannot bind the Council or Scottish Executive who will have to make the decisions. But it will be a significant input to their decision-making process.
“The sensible dates would seem to be a Friday and Saturday towards the end of January. We need a suitable question to ask and I putting up my own suggestion so that people can respond with feedback.
“Failing any significant change in circumstances, the referendum is now on.”