THE SNP will give Scots “more power and influence at Westminster” than they have ever had before, Nicola Sturgeon will claim today.
The First Minister will spend the final day of the election campaign setting out the case for voters to back the SNP. This morning will see Sturgeon campaigning in Edinburgh before heading to the Scottish Parliament.
This week’s First Minister’s Question Time has been brought forward 24 hours to stop it clashing with polling day. The session with Sturgeon, Kezia Dugdale, Ruth Davidson and Willie Rennie will likely be dominated by the election.
Speaking at an SNP street stall at the foot of The Mound, Sturgeon will call on Scots to vote for her party.
The SNP leader is expected to say: “With less than 24 hours until the polls open, Scotland has the opportunity to have more power and influence at Westminster than ever before.
“Over the past weeks and months, SNP supporters across the country have worked tirelessly to spread our positive message of progressive politics to benefit Scotland and the whole UK.”
The First Minister will also use her speech to reach undecided voters by adding: “As the General Election campaign draws to a close, there are still precious hours and minutes to make Scotland’s voice heard. The fact is the SNP are the only party offering an alternative to the harsh Westminster cuts that have caused pain in Scotland and across these islands for the past five years.”
Sturgeon is also expected to re-iterate the key policies of the SNP’s general election campaign: “The SNP will vote to scrap Trident renewal – freeing up the £100 billion the Westminster parties plan to waste on immoral weapons of mass destruction and investing instead in health, education and childcare.
“And our plans to end austerity would see an increase in health spending across the UK of £24bn by 2020-21 – £9.5bn above inflation – including £2bn in Scotland.
“We have also made crystal clear that we will never put the Tories into Downing Street. A strong team of SNP MPs will work with other progressive parties to lock the Tories out of Downing Street.
“On Thursday morning, Scotland has the opportunity to make its voice heard at Westminster like never before. I know that a strong team of SNP MPs will have Scotland’s interests at heart first, last and always. In these final hours I will be campaigning tirelessly to get the message out.
“And I truly hope that Scotland will unite to put its trust in the SNP to bring about the progressive change that people across the UK are waiting for.”
Yesterday, the First Minister took part in a debate on popular web forum Mumsnet. Answering a question from a user who said they felt uncomfortable at the “anti-English rhetoric of the referendum” Sturgeon insisted England and the English would always be “family”.
“There is not an anti-English bone in my body,” she said, “I am the grand-daughter of an English woman. I love England and her people and, regardless of politics, consider you to be family ... and always will.”
Sturgeon also avoided a Mumsnet mis-step by saying her favourite biscuit was a Tunnock’s Caramel Wafer when asked the infamous “favourite biscuit” question.
She avoided fate of Gordon Brown in 2010 when he refused to answer the question for 24 hours, before finally saying he enjoyed a chocolate biscuit, in an incident known as biscuit-gate.
Hecklers suspended
TWO of the protesters who disrupted a Scottish Labour rally have been suspended from the SNP.
Piers Doughty-Brown and James Scott were part of a group which confronted party leader Jim Murphy in Glasgow’s city centre as he campaigned with comedian Eddie Izzard.
Murphy struggled to be heard over chants of “red Tories out” and cut short the campaign visit as scuffles broke out outside the St Enoch Centre.
The SNP confirmed yesterday that it had placed the two men under administrative suspension. The First Minister condemned the scenes, stating that “these people weren’t acting on behalf of the SNP”.
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