Dugdale says even Labour wipe-out would not make her quit

Labour currently has one seat in Scotland, Edinburgh South, which the SNP hope to gain.

Opinion polls suggest Scottish Labour will come third on vote share behind the Tories, and are likely to come fourth in terms of seats, if they have any at all.

Appearing on BBC Radio Scotland’s Kaye Adams programme, Ms Dugdale was asked by the presenter what kind of election result it would take for her to stand down.

Ms Dugdale said: “I’m not going to even countenance that until the next Scottish Parliament elections. I’ve signed up to do a job for five years, that’s what I’m going to do.”

Ms Adams then asked: “No matter what the results in the general election, whether you’re left with no Labour MPs in Scotland?”

Ms Dugdale replied: “No matter what the outcome of that election I’m here for a five-year job.”

The Lothians MSP also revealed she had not voted for Labour or any other party until she was 23, meaning the 35-year-old sat out the 2001 Westminster election, the 2003 Scottish local election, the 2003 Scottish Parliament election, and the 2004 European election.

Ms Dugdale also suggested UK Labour’s campaign had been little better than adequate so far, rating it “six or seven” out of 10.

She rejected the initial view of Unite boss Len McCluskey, who said on Tuesday he could not see Labour winning the election, before recanting yesterday and declaring himself "full of optimism"

She said of his first assessment: "I think he's wrong, I hope he's wrong."

Asked what success would look like in Scotland, she said: "I want to make progress in Scotland, I want to win more seats, I want to reduce the majority of SNP MPs in many other seats. The reality is in the vast majority of seats across Scotland's central belt, it is the Labour Party that stands a very strong second to the SNP."

Scottish Tory deputy leader Jackson Carlaw said of her "six or seven" rating: "If even the leader of the Scottish Labour party ranks Labour so poorly, why should people in Scotland give Labour a chance?”

Later, Ms Dugdale gave a speech in Glasgow in which she said this was “no ordinary election” but one which “determine whether there is a United Kingdom at all”.

She said: “The SNP and the Tories - both purposefully and ignorantly - are ripping our country apart. That is how important this election is to the future of our country.

“We are locked in a constitutional straitjacket. It will poison our politics for years to come.”

She said a “majority for change” were “sick of the Tories' lack of compassion and the SNP's obsession with another referendum”.

She said: "Don’t vote for the SNP to sit on the opposition benches, where they will seek to exploit every piece of Tory cruelty to make the case for independence. And don’t forget that a vote for Ruth Davidson’s Conservatives is every bit an endorsement of the rape clause and hard Brexit as it is opposition to independence.”

On the campaign trail in East Lothian, Nicola Sturgeon repeated her argument that a strong SNP result next month would strengthen Scotland’s input into the looming Brexit negotiations.

She said: “If people trust us with their vote and the SNP wins the election in Scotland, that gives us a clear mandate to be at the top table in Brexit negotiations.

“It will send a powerful message straight to Westminster that Scotland won’t stand by while jobs and vital industries are being sold out by the Tories.

“The SNP will always work to make our country the very best it can be. We won’t let the Tories cause untold, unchecked damage to our economy. Deeper cuts and further Tory austerity isn't the cure and neither is cutting off free trade with our closest neighbours in Europe."

Visiting a nursery in East Renfrewshire, Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson accused the SNP of failing to come up with new ideas on education as they pursued independence.

She called for teaching trainees to be tested on literacy and numeracy, a new independent inspectorate to check school standards, and more help for children from low-income families.

She said: “While Nicola Sturgeon has pressed ahead with her independence obsession, a generation of school-children has been left behind.

“People across Scotland have had enough. We need action now.”

In Glasgow, former LibDem business minister, who is trying to regain the East Dunbartonshire seat she lost to the SNP in 2015, said her party’s pro-EU position would protect jobs.

She said: “The Conservative hard Brexit puts at risk up to 80,000 Scottish jobs, according to the respected Fraser of Allander Institute.

"The SNP want to break up the UK single market that is worth four times as much.

"We are the only party that will work to keep Scottish business in the UK and EU markets, and offer practical support for business and a transformative investment in education."