The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Scottish leaders’ debate: Sturgeon vows to make Miliband PM
NICOLA STURGEON has pledged that the SNP would help make Labour’s Ed Miliband prime minister if the Conservatives fail to win a majority in next month’s general election.
The Scottish First Minister made the offer as she clashed with Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy in the first televised Scottish leaders ’debate.
Mr Murphy insisted his party did not need “help” from the nationalists to oust Conservative David Cameron from 10 Downing Street.
The Scottish Labour leader asked the First Minister: “Nicola, do you want Ed Miliband to be prime minister?”
She told him: “I don’t want David Cameron to be prime minister, I’m offering to help make Ed Miliband prime minister.”
Mr Murphy insisted: “Nicola, we don’t need your help. What we need is people north and south of the border, people in Scotland, people in England and people across Wales coming together to kick out an out-of-touch government.”
Ms Sturgeon, however, insisted that the Labour Party did not offer an alternative to austerity, and SNP MPs were needed in Westminster to keep them “honest”.
She said: “The Labour Party right now is not offering an alternative to Tory austerity, I stood on a platform last week in the UK leaders’ debate with Ed Miliband and I heard Miliband say if Labour is elected and left to their own devices there will be further spending reductions.
“I don’t want to see further spending reductions, I don’t think the country can afford them. That’s why we’re proposing modest spending increases and with SNP influence we can force Labour down that path.”
Ms Sturgeon said if a “strong block” of SNP MPs are returned to Westminster on May 7 “we can make sure Labour keeps their promises”. She added: “In short, we can keep Labour honest.”
The SNP leader continued: “If you want the kind of progressive change I think Scotland needs and wants, send a strong team of SNP MPs to the House of Commons to make sure we get it and make sure Scotland’s voice is heard.”
Mr Murphy stressed that key in the election was ensuring that “working people do better” after the ballot.
While Labour has seen support fall away in Scotland, he added: “Labour has changed, and we will continue to change.”
Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson challenged Ms Sturgeon on her plans to support a minority Labour administration.
Ms Davidson asked: “Why is Nicola running around saying ‘Labour is rubbish, vote for me so I can put them in office’?”
She insisted her party had tried to rebuild the economy after the recession with some of the most vulnerable in mind.
“That’s why we’ve increased the minimum wage higher than inflation, that’s why the Scottish Conservatives have a plan to help companies introduce the Living Wage.”
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie also highlighted the increase in the income tax threshold under the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition Government.
He said: “What we’ve done, with one of the biggest recessions this country has ever faced, is we’ve got the economy back on track and we’ve done it fairly.”
Mr Rennie said the Lib Dems are prepared to work with other parties but that it would not be reasonable to put the SNP in charge as they are in favour of breaking up the UK.
Ms Davidson ruled out any deal with the SNP and promised to fight to honour the outcome of the independence referendum. IT TOOK a long time to get going but this TV debate between Scotland’s political leaders ignited towards its conclusion.
The first of two back-toback clashes ahead of the general election saw Nicola Sturgeon and Jim Murphy greet each other with a handshake as they walked on to the stage of the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh.
But it was all a bit dull as party lines were trotted out telling us nothing new.
When you get half way through and the most excitement is caused by a man with a comedy fake moustache, it says it all about the sterile answers being given.
Bernard Po ns o n by presided over a bizarre, soulless format which only came to life when the audience got properly involved.
Murphy gave an impassioned second half performance, though.
First of all he angrily clashed with Ruth Davidson in an exchange which will have annoyed the First Minister, who did not want the debate turning into a contest between those two parties.
Sturgeon hit back by branding it a “manufactured division” and claiming Labour will make £30 billion worth of spending cuts.
Referencing an Institute of Fiscal Studies document which mentions no such number, Murphy retorted: “You might get away with that when you’re having your debate in England but you won’t get away with that here in Scotland.” Cue “oooohs” in the spin room.
That set the tone for a lively final exchange where each leader could go for each other, but which fell into a three on one attack as Murphy, Davidson and Rennie all went in hard on the SNP’s time in government.
It threatened to get a bit over the top — but it was no surprise there would be a rounding on Ms Sturgeon after her breeze of a performance in last Thursday’s UK leaders’ debate.
And it worked, to an extent. The Scottish Government’s record on education and policing is shoogly at best and the audience responded enthusiastically for the period this was held to account.
Murphy and Davidson should be the happiest with their energetic performances but, despite a concer ted effor t, no seriously damaging blows were landed on Sturgeon.