John Swinney has admitted that Scotland is not ready for a second independence referendum, a decade after losing the first one.
The First Minister said there must be "compelling and demonstrable" backing for Scotland for independence before the country would consider leaving the UK.
A source close to Mr Swinney added that sustained polling showing a clear majority for independence would signal that Scottish sentiment has shifted.
There seems like a long way to go before that happens, however, with fresh data from YouGov finding that most (51%) Scots think the independence question has received too much discussion in the last decade.
Only 18% of people asked said it should have been given more attention, including less than a third (31%) of Yes voters.
In a speech marking the tenth anniversary of the referendum, Mr Swinney said supports need to "get on with setting out the better alternative" to the status quo.
"Today, in 2024, we must reawaken that sense of hope, of optimism and of possibility that was so prevalent ten years ago," he added.
Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who led Scotland after the referendum when Alex Salmond stood down, conceded that she wasn't able to find a way around "a brick wall of Westminster democracy denial" to force another vote.
In an interview with the BBC, she said: "Had that right to choose been secured, I believe Scotland would have voted Yes."