BRING ON COALITION CHAOS
Corbyn secretly plotting to cut a deal with Nats, Lib Dems and Greens to win him keys to No 10
JEREMY Corbyn secretly wants to create a ‘coalition of chaos’ with the SNP, insiders have revealed.
A Labour campaign source confirmed that the party is confining itself to fighting for a hung parliament rather than an outright victory.
Under the plan, Mr Corbyn would secure the keys to Downing Street after being propped up by a ‘progressive alliance’ of the SNP, Liberal Democrats and the Greens.
The details emerged after Miss Sturgeon this week threatened to help Mr Corbyn into No 10. After her comments, Mr Corbyn stated that he would not work with a party that wants to break up Britain.
But yesterday, a member of his campaign team told the Mirror that the party’s ‘number one priority’ is to deny Theresa May an overall majority on June 8.
The source suggested Labour would then be well-placed to cut a deal with the SNP, Lib Dems and Greens that could mean Mr Corbyn is installed as Prime Minister.
Although it would not be a full coalition, they envisage a minority Labour government supported by the other opposition parties in an informal ‘confidence and supply’ system.
The Labour source said: ‘Our number one goal is to deny the Tories a majority. And that is not beyond the realms of imagination.
‘If we can take, say, 40 seats off them – and we’re only talking overturning small majorities – then we can be somewhere near parity.
‘If the Lib Dems do well, too, the Tories will be out of government. Who is going to be able to cut a deal [with the other parties] over Brexit, us or them?’
Yesterday, Mrs May repeated her claim that the election was a ‘very clear choice between strong and stable leadership under the Conservatives or a coalition of chaos led by Jeremy Corbyn’.
The idea of a pact – first put forward by the Greens – was backed by former Lib Dem leader Lord Ashdown, who tweeted: ‘Well done the Greens for reaching out for sensible seat arrangements, where these can be done. Labour and Lib Dems should respond positively.’
Launching his campaign for reelection in the Scottish Borders yesterday, Scottish Secretary David Mundell said: ‘Jeremy Corbyn would sell pro-UK Scots out in a heartbeat. He would happily do a deal with the SNP to get into power – after all, we know he is “absolutely fine” with a second referendum.
‘Under Ruth Davidson, we have what it takes to challenge the SNP.’
In Edinburgh yesterday, Miss Sturgeon indicated her acceptance that the Tories will increase their majority in June, saying: ‘I don’t want to see a Tory government but I can read the opinion polls as well as anybody else can.’
Earlier this month, Mrs May rejected Miss Sturgeon’s demand to hold a second independence referendum between autumn next year and spring of 2019.
Asked if she felt a large Tory victory in June would boost support for independence, Miss Sturgeon said: ‘An increased majority for the Tories would be bad for Scotland, it would be bad for the whole of the UK, because we’ve seen the damage the Tories can do with the majority they have got just now.
‘The thing I’m asking Scotland to do to protect against that is make sure they’ve got SNP MPs elected to stand up for Scotland.
‘I’ve got a mandate for a second independence referendum. I sought that mandate a year ago at the Scottish elections and won that election overwhelmingly.
‘The General Election is about making sure the Tories don’t get to crush dissent and silence opposition, and steamroller over how Scotland has voted.
‘It is about making sure Scotland’s voice is heard, and certainly independence is an aspect of that, but it is bigger than that. It is about making sure we don’t allow the Tories to continue to do the social and economic damage to Scotland that they have done in recent years.’
Miss Sturgeon also launched the SNP’s local election manifesto yesterday.
She said: ‘There is a danger, either through people voting Tory or Labour potentially looking at coalitions with the Tories to keep them in power, that we see local services slipping into Tory hands.
‘That would be disastrous for the services that local councils are responsible for.’
Pressed on whether she would forbid SNP council groups from forming coalitions with Tory groups, she said: ‘I don’t want to see the Tories with their hands on local services.
‘Anybody who looks at the relationships between the SNP and the Tories right now would think that is hugely unlikely.’
Scottish Conservative chief whip John Lamont said: ‘These scare tactics from the First Minister won’t fool anyone.
‘A vote for the Scottish Conservatives at this election will deliver a strong message to the SNP – we don’t want your unwanted independence referendum, we want you to get on with the day job.’
Meanwhile, the SNP is expected to confirm today that it will not allow suspended MPs Michelle Thomson and Natalie McGarry to stand for the party in the General Election.
Following a meeting of the party’s national executive committee, it is set to say it will be looking for five candidates – three for seats it failed to win in 2015 and two for the constituencies of its suspended MPs.
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