Leave voters backed Brexit because they wanted to “reduce the number of different coloured faces on their street”, a Liberal Democrat MSP said.
Alex Cole-Hamilton said a “fury” over immigration was behind many people voting to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum.
He added that if the UK did withdraw from the EU, Lib Dems would automatically campaign for the country’s re-entry.
Speaking at a fringe event at the Scottish Lib Dem conference in Hamilton, Cole-Hamilton said: “This whole disaster was born out of a much older fury, it was misplaced, it was stoked up over 40 years.
“People that went to the ballot box on June 23 voted to leave the EU because they would reduce the number of different coloured faces on their streets, which we know is absolute nonsense, but it is born of that fury.”
He also told the event: “We have a party policy on this, both at a Scottish level and at a federal level. If we leave the European Union, be it on March 29 or some later date because of an extension, then this party will automatically pivot from the party of remain to the party of re-entry.
“I think we have to say that loud and clear and not be afraid of saying that. We will be the party of re-entry.”