NICOLA Sturgeon has been accused by Labour of "horse trading" with Britain's national security after she said scrapping Trident would be an absolute priority if her party holds the balance of power at Westminster.

 

In the strongest indication yet that abandoning the renewal of the nuclear deterrent would be the key demand of the SNP if it is in a position to prop up Labour following May's general election, she suggested that savings of up to £4 billion a year should instead be ploughed into health and education.

Ms Sturgeon called on Ed Miliband to reconsider his party's policy on the issue, saying many Labour activists also wanted to see an end to Trident and labelling the Clyde-based weapons system "unusable and indefensible" and "ludicrous on both defence and financial grounds".

The position laid out by the First Minister sparked an angry reaction from Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy, who said that abandoning Britain's nuclear deterrent would be "wrong" and that it was "too important" to be used by politicians as a bargaining chip.

Ms Sturgeon said: "If we deliver a strong team of SNP MPs at the General Election, an absolute priority will be getting Trident renewal halted. And the more MPs we get elected, the greater the chances of holding the balance of power and achieving the end of Trident, which will free up enormous resources.

"This election is about big choices, and people in Scotland can achieve big changes by voting SNP. As a weapons system designed for the Cold War, the case for Trident is non-existent in 2015, and it will be utterly unlamented if we are successful in getting rid of it.

"No sensible UK Government would develop a nuclear weapons capability now if one didn't exist. Therefore, a strong group of SNP MPs in a hung parliament, working with other progressive political forces, can bring sanity to bear now - and halt Trident renewal in its tracks."

The Nationalists plan to set out exactly how they would spend Scotland's share of the cash Britain would save if Trident is not renewed, Ms Sturgeon added.

Recent polling has predicted that the SNP is on course to return between 35 and 55 MPs in May, a figure that would put the party in a hugely influential position if Labour or the Tories fail gain an overall majority.

Ms Sturgeon also said that a strong group of SNP MPs would play a "constructive and progressive" role at Westminster, potentially forming a "progressive alliance" with parties such as Plaid Cymru and the Greens.

She also confirmed that her party would vote on issues that were devolved to Holyrood in the Commons, a move that paves the way for a possible coalition deal.

The First Minister said that while she backed the principle of English votes for English laws at Westminster it was "perfectly legitimate" for her MPs to vote on issues such as the NHS as they would directly impact on funding for Scotland's health service.

Mr Murphy, speaking shortly after Ms Sturgeon set out her position, criticised the SNP for "playing footsie" with other parties over hypothetical coalition deals in the Commons.

On the issue of Trident, he said that negotiations over disarmament should take place with other nuclear states with a view to multilateral disarmament.

"The nuclear deterrent is too important to get involved in that sort of horse trading with the nation's safety," he said. "I want a world free of nuclear weapons - you should negotiate that with other nuclear powers, not negotiate for party gain."

The East Renfrewshire MP once again refused to confirm whether he will run for re-election to the Commons in May.

While Mr Murphy has been selected as the Labour candidate for the Westminster seat he has held since 1997, he has vowed to be his party's candidate for First Minister in 2016 but has not yet revealed how he plans to enter Holyrood.

"If I'm First Minister of Scotland I wouldn't want to be an MSP and an MP, but I'll make this decision - of course I'll make decisions about these things and ... I'll tell my constituents first about these things," he said.